Hearts of Ice
by KittieKat121
Summary: What if one single event changed everything you knew? And you had to leave everything you loved? Would you be strong enough? Who can you trust? Your family? Your enemy? Yourself...? When the Volturi come to attack, Renesmee must leave her life behind and deal with the danger herself. Read the A/N at the top of chapter one for a better explanation.
1. Monsters under the bed

**A/N:**

**Okay, so first of all I should probably explain more about this story as it may get a little confusing...**

**Basically, follow the proper twilight stories up until a little way through breaking dawn until Bella gets pregnant, and then everything kinda changed...firstly, Bella and Edward don't return to Forks to have their baby. Bella isn't in danger from the pregnancy because the baby grows at a normal rate rather than trying to rip it's way out of her and slowly kill her...**

**So, Bella and Edward never go back to see their family, and only contact them occasionally over the phone. None of them know about Bella's pregnancy because Alice can't see the future of the baby or Bella whilst she's pregnant (Like in twilight). Bella isn't turned into a vampire after they have the baby (Renesmee). Renesmee grows at a normal human speed, rather than weird vampire speed. They ****live in hiding because they don't want the volturi finding out about Renesmee.**

**Eight years later, Bella gets pregnant again. Again, the baby grows at normal pregnancy speed and Bella is not in danger etcetera etcetera, but there are some 'normal human complications' during the birth and Bella is going to die, so Edward changes her into a vampire. So, now we have a vampire Edward, newborn vampire Bella, eight year old half-vampire-half-human Renesmee, and a new baby girl half-vampire-half-human which they call Arietta. **

**And now we skip another nine years on, to when this story takes place. Edward and Bella are vegetarian vampires, Renesmee is seventeen years old and can eat human food/sleep/do all human things as well as drinking blood (animal blood)/vampire strength/speed/doesn't need sleep etc, and Arietta is nine years old and also has all the human and vampire traits. Renesmee's vampire power is that she can show people images through touching them (like in twilight) and Arietta's vampire power is a mental block like Bella.**

**Anyway, I'll stop rattling on and get on with the story...hope you like it :)**

* * *

**Hearts of Ice**

**Chapter One: Monsters under the bed**

When I was little I used to hide from the monsters that lurked under the bed. I mean, most kids do, but my parent's actually encouraged it. They used to tell me that there were bad things out there - dangerous, scary things. Sometimes my Mom would hide in there with me, whilst Dad stayed downstairs to protect us from the big scary monsters. Sometimes, my parents would tell me when to hide. "Quick, the monsters are coming!" They would say, and off I would go, into my closet or up in the attic, and I wouldn't come out until Mom or Dad came to tell me it was safe again.

As I grew up, I realised how stupid that was. Given what I was, what could possibly be out there that was dangerous to me? Still, I had to keep on hiding, huddled into a cupboard with Mom. That went on until I was eight, and then Mom changed, and she didn't need to hide anymore. Instead, I was given baby Arietta, and told to take her into hiding with me. It was still going on now, even though I knew there were no monsters under the bed.

I walked up the pathway towards Josh's house, balancing a pizza box in one hand and my purse, containing several of our favourite DVDs, on my arm. Josh and I had been dating for almost a year, and it wasn't strange for me to pop around uninvited with a movie and some kind of take-out food. It wasn't like he could come round my house - I would have rather a lot of explaining to do.

I knocked on the door with my spare hand, trying to ignore the delicious smell of cheese and pepperoni coming from the cardboard box in my hand. I was _starving_ and it had taken all my self-preservation to not eat half the pizza on my way over here. I heard noises behind the door, but it didn't open. I rolled my eyes and waiting patiently. Would it be rude to knock again?

The door opened only half way and Josh stood there, wrapping in a dressing gown. I raised my eyebrows. It was 4.00pm and he wasn't dressed yet? That was so...well it was so un-Josh like. _I_ was the one who was forever sleeping in late and accidentally missing our dates. Josh was always up and ready so early that the good shows hadn't even started on tv yet.

"Renesmee!" Josh looked alarmed to see me, "What are you doing here?"

"It's nice to see you too." I teased. His laugh was fake and nervous. I studied him for a second. He looked guilty. "What's going on?"

"Nothing! I just didn't expect you round! You couldn't have called first?" He asked. Since when did I have to call first? That was the best thing in our relationship; we were so close that I could walk into his house whenever I wanted, whether his parents were home or not, and hang out. We could do everything together, talk about anything. We could watch horror movies or chick flicks, we could get a fancy meal or grab a cheeseburger, we could watch a football game or go shopping - it didn't matter what we did, because it was fun as long as the other person was there. Josh was more than just my boyfriend. He always there for me, whatever I needed. He was my best friend, my shoulder to cry on, my life coach, my personal tutor, my everything. And right now, he was lying to me.

I took a step closer but Josh blocked the way into the house. As soon as I stepped closer I realised that there was another human inside. I'd been too distracted by my hunger and the smell of pizza to notice the human at first. Besides, I was used to Josh's parents being home, and sometimes his mates would be round when I came over, so I hadn't given it much thought. But now it dawned on me that this human was probably what Josh was trying to block me from seeing.

"Josh?" I enquired, taking another step forward. He didn't let me pass. He was beginning to panic now - his breathing getting faster and his heart rate increasing rapidly.

"It's not a good time Renesmee." Josh told me

"Why?" I asked. Josh was blocking my way, but I moved quickly before he could react and looked over his shoulder into the hallway. Standing halfway down the stairs was a girl around my age, leaning on the banister watching Josh and wearing nothing but a bed sheet. I gaped at her, trying to take in the whole situation. "Who is _that_?" I asked very slowly and quietly through clenched teeth. Josh's eyes grew wide.

"Uh...Renesmee, I-" Josh began

"How long have you been sleeping with her?" I asked. Josh seemed to realise that he had been caught red handed. There was no explaining his way out of this one. "How long have you been cheating on me?"

"This was the first time I've slept with her, I swear." He said. I didn't like the way he'd answered my first question and not my second question. I didn't like the way the words 'with _her_' seemed to be a little weighted.

"Have there been others?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"No." Josh said

"Don't lie to me!" I screamed. Josh jumped at my raised voice.

"Renesmee, look, I just-" He began. I looked over to the girl on the stairs. I expected her to look embarrassed at being caught at a guys house undressed. I expected her to look shocked that said guy's girlfriend had just turned up at the door. I expected her to look awkward at seeing our relationship falling apart in front of her. I expected her to look ashamed at what she and Josh - a very _not_ single guy - had been doing. I did not expect her to be wearing the smug expression that she was.

"I'm sorry Renesmee!" Josh said, "I screwed up! I swear it will never happen again!"

"Damn right it won't!" I yelled, "We're over!"

I threw the pizza at him and he looked surprised at my yelling. Well, what did he expect? That I would just accept his apology and let him finish with this random chick whilst I skipped over the movie trailers?

"Renesmee, don't be like this!" Josh said

"Excuse me?" I asked. He was talking like I was overreacting, like I was being a stubborn brat wanting my own way. The only thing I wanted was a boyfriend who didn't have sex with random girls off the street. I obviously wasn't going to find that here. "Goodbye Joshua."

I turned on my heel and began walking away, but Josh caught my arm. "Hey can we talk about this?"

"What's there to talk about?" I asked. Josh sighed.

"Just wait there. Give me two minutes okay, please?" He asked

"I don't owe you any favours." I said

"No, you're right. You don't." Josh said, "But would you at least give me a chance to explain and apologize properly?" I didn't say anything. "Please wait here. I'll be right out."

I should have just left him there but I didn't. I waited as he shut the door and disappeared inside. He came back out a few minutes later wearing jeans and a t-shirt and hoodie.

"Come on, we'll take the Audi." He said, unlocking his car and opening the door for me. I really shouldn't have got inside, but I did anyway. He climbed in the drivers seat and turned on the engine, rolling away from the curb and driving down the street away from his house. We drove in silence, until we came to our favourite little diner. We had so many happy memories here, and I wondered if that was why Josh had picked here to beg his forgiveness.

He led me inside and ordered us both milkshakes before taking me to our usual booth. I still hadn't said anything, and after a few minutes, Josh broke the silence, "Renesmee, I'm really-"

Now that he'd started speaking, I found my voice and suddenly had a lot to say. I kept my voice quiet and calm, despite the rage inside my head screaming at me to yell and kick and shout. "When was the first time?"

Josh stopped, and watched me for a few counts before saying quietly, "About 8 months ago."

_8 months_? We'd only been going out for 11 months and he'd been unfaithful for 8 of those?

"How...how many have there been?" I asked. Josh didn't want to answer that, I could tell, but I think he knew I needed to know.

"I...I'm not sure." He said.

"Jesus, how many have there been if you can't even remember?" I asked, my voice raising a little before I regained control and lowered it again, "Were they all one time things?"

"Mostly..." Josh said carefully. I waited for him to go on. "There have been a couple that lasted a few weeks, but they never really meant anything."

"So what, none of them meant anything to you?" I asked, "You didn't feel anything, it was just sex, right?" Josh hesitated, "Please just be honest with me Josh, I think you owe me that much."

"You're right. I do." He said, then he sighed, "One. I thought she might mean something to me. I had feelings for her, and I think she might have loved me. But that was months ago, and I ended it. I might have loved her back, but I loved you more."

I stared at him, unable to move. _Why_ was I taking this crap?

Why was I sat here listening to my sleazebag boyfriend explain how he loved me _more_ than the other girl he loved, as if he expected that to justify him sleeping with more girls than he could count.

"Is this my fault?" I asked.

_What_?

I was blaming myself now was I? I hadn't even meant to say it. I hadn't even thought it, I just...it just came out.

"God, Renesmee, no!" He said

"But I mean, I didn't put out and-" I began

"Renesmee." Josh said, stopping me. "That is not the reason. And besides, you did put out."

Yeah, after I was frigid for 10 months. Geez, no wonder he'd looked elsewhere. Three weeks ago, I'd lost my virginity to Josh. I knew he'd slept with his old girlfriend, but I assumed that I was at least his _second_. He'd said he would wait for me. He'd said there was no rush. He'd never said he wouldn't get some elsewhere whilst he waited.

Oh my God. I'd had sex with Josh in his bed. How many other girls had done the same in the last year? It made me feel sick.

But why was Josh still up to his cheating? Since that first time, I'd been willing to do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. I was not above booty calls in the middle of the night - providing of course I could keep my thoughts hidden from my father as I answered the phone. So why did he still go after these other girls?

I realised I hadn't asked the obvious question.

"So what is the reason?" I asked. Josh didn't say anything. I looked up and met his gaze, but he still didn't explain.

"I'm so sorry, Renesmee." He said. We sat in silence for a while before I stood up.

"I should go." I said

"Wait!" Josh said, "Are we okay? I mean, are we still dating?"

I stared at him, "No!"

"Why? I said I was sorry!" Josh said

"You're a jerk, Josh." I said, and I stormed out of the diner.

We'd come in the Audi - Josh's car - so I didn't really have a ride home. That wasn't a problem, I wasn't planning on going home anyway. Whilst on the car journey to the diner I'd gotten a call from Mom, and then from Dad when I didn't answer the first call. After that I'd turned my phone off. I didn't want to deal with them right now. Mom was sometimes nice enough to put her mental shield up over me and Arietta, so that Dad couldn't read out thoughts and 'invade our privacy', but she wasn't always so kind and there was no way for me to know when my thoughts were protected and when my Dad would know what had happened the second I walked through the front door.

I didn't want him knowing this.

As soon as I was into the forest and out of sight, I ran at vampire speed. In no time at all, I was sat on my cliff. It was peaceful up here, when everything got too much. It was so deep into the forest that no one came here. It looked out onto the stormy grey sea and provided the perfect place for a half-vampire-half-human to cry her eyes out.

I turned on my phone to see that I had multiple missed calls and a couple of text messages. I didn't bother opening the messages or listening to the voicemails. They would want me home, and I didn't want to go home. It began to rain lightly, but I didn't care.

"Renesmee?"

My head whirled round and my anger rose up again when I saw Josh standing there. What was he doing here? This was _my_ secret place. No one except me knew about it!

Except, I realised, Josh.

I'd shown him my private place a few weeks ago, as I sign of trust.

Trust.

Ha.

"Get lost Josh." I spat. I wanted to be alone. That was the whole point of this place, didn't he get that? Didn't he understand that he was the last person on earth I wanted to see right now?

"Renesmee, I don't want you to be upset." He said. Well, he should have thought of that before he cheated on me, shouldn't he?

"Well, that's good, because I'm not upset." I said instead.

"Renesmee." He said, with that knowing tone of voice.

"I seriously don't want to see you right now, Josh." I told him

"Yeah I get that," He said. It didn't seem like he did. "But I meant what I said. I really am sorry. And even if we break up-"

My phone rang, interrupting him. I glanced at the caller ID. Mom. I ignored it. "There's no 'if' about it Josh. We. Are. Over. Now leave me alone."

"You know I love you Renesmee." He said. I ignored him as my phone rang again. I heard Josh sigh, "Can we still be friends?"

There was a little ping that meant Dad had left a voicemail. Geez, would they just leave me alone? I was sick of their overprotectiveness. I was sick of them calling to check up on me and asking me to come home and random times. I was sick of hiding from the monsters under the bed and at the door.

"Will you at least turn around and look at me?" Josh pleaded.

I did, but only to show him that I was 100% serious about what I was saying. "I don't want you anywhere near me, Josh. I don't want you to be my boyfriend, I don't want you to be my friend. I don't want you to be my anything. I want you out of my life. You're nothing to me."

And just like that, Josh went from being my everything to being my nothing.

My phone rang again, and the annoying tinkling piano music that was Dad's customized ringtone was the only noise that filled the silence. It stopped after a minute, but Josh and I remained silent, staring at each other.

"Fine." Josh said finally. "I'll go."

I felt like yelling after him. I felt like saying "Fine, go back to your slut and have your fun, what exactly did you tell her to trick her into sleeping with you? Or is she just that dumb?"

But I didn't. Because that would have been petty and immature. And also because apparently, I was 'just that dumb' too.

So Josh walked away.

And I nearly threw my phone off the cliff as the piano music started to play again.

I ignored the call, and then felt bad. My parents probably _would_ be really worried if I'd missed this many calls. A text came straight through and, still feeling guilty, I opened it and read it.

**Get home now. I'm not kidding. We're in trouble.**

We're in trouble. Not you're in trouble, as in we're mad at you for ignoring our calls and not coming home, but we're in trouble, as in our family is in danger and you need to get home right now.

Shit.

I raced home at full vampire speed, not even considering that Josh - or any other human for that matter - could still be around. Luckily, he wasn't. I slowed my pace as I got to the house, and walked up to the door at a quick but human pace. I opened the door to utter chaos.

My parents were running around stuffing things into bags, trying to find important documents, and creating a mess. Arietta was stood in the corner, whimpering and clutching a backpack to her chest. Mom noticed me first, "Renesmee! We were so worried!"

But she didn't stop and come rushing to hug me as I first expected. In fact, she didn't even look my way, just carried on with whatever the hell she was doing.

"What's going on?" I asked

"We're leaving. Now." Dad said

"What? Why?" I asked

"Renesmee, you know how I used to tell you how there were bad things out there?" Mom asked.

"Yeah...?" I asked, not sure what she was getting at. All parents said that to their kids, to stop them taking candy from strangers, or running into roads without looking.

"Just because we are vampires, it doesn't mean there's nothing out there that's dangerous." She continued. I waited for her to explain, "We've never been completely honest with you, Renesmee."

"Just tell me what's happening!" I said

"Normal vampire's don't have children. They can't." Mom said

"I know." I said. It was obvious, vampires couldn't have kids. "That's why you had me and Arietta when you were human."

Mom and Dad exchanged looks, "We didn't plan it like that. Most vampire's don't fall in love with humans. They fall in love with other vampires, after they've been changed. Or if they do love a human, they change them straight away." I was growing more confused by the second. I didn't understand what this had to do with what was going on. "You see, not all vampires live like us. Some vampires...they drink human blood."

"What?" I couldn't help interrupting. Human blood? That was news to me! We lived in peace with the humans, drinking animal blood like they ate animal meat. It had never occurred to me that there might be another way. It had never occurred to me to drink from humans.

"That's the natural way for most vampires. We're a special coven of vampires. Vegetarians, if you will." Dad stepped in. I stared at both of my parents.

"Why are you telling me all this?" I asked. They exchanged looks again.

"We should have told you this sooner." Mom said

"There was no need." Dad argued

"Just tell me what's happening!" I said, moments away from yelling.

"Vampires that drink human blood are allowed to live amongst humans and kill their victims, as long as they are discreet. As long as they don't reveal our world to mortals." Mom said, "The people who keep the laws are called the Volturi. They're like the vampire royal family, I suppose."

"But what has it got to do with me?" I asked, impatient and wanting an explanation.

"There are myths about young vampires. Children vampires." Mom said, "They can't control themselves. They kill everything they can, and reveal our world. They are dangerous."

"But I'm not-" I began

"No," Mom interrupted, putting her hand up to stop me, "What I mean is, if a vampire were to turn a human child by biting them. You are not like that because you were born, not bitten. You are half human."

"So...?" I prompted

"The Volturi would not understand that. They wouldn't wait long enough to let us explain." Mom said, "We've been hiding you for 17 years, Renesmee, and they've found us."

I felt my eyes grow wide. Every time I'd been told to hide from the monsters...I really was hiding? There really was danger?

"What...what will the Volturi do once they come?" I asked, afraid to hear the answer.

"They killed the child vampires." Dad said, never one to stall. I stared at him. "But that's not going to happen to you. That's why we're leaving."

"Where are we going?" I asked, suddenly every petty boyfriend worry and thoughts of annoying parents banished from my mind as I focussed. We were in danger and we were leaving. That was all that mattered right now.

"We have family a little way away, but they don't know about you." Mom said, "The Volturi won't actually be looking for you, they'll be looking for me and your father."

I narrowed my eyes. "We're splitting up?"

"We have to." Dad said, "I've told you about my family, I think."

"Not really." I said, "I know I have grandparents, and two aunts and two uncles. Alice and Jasper, and Emmett and Rosalie, right?"

Dad nodded, "They will be able to take care of you until me and your Mom can come back."

"They don't know about you yet." Mom said, "I've packed some thing's you'll need and letters that explain who you are and why we need their help." She handed me a bag packed with my stuff. I guess I didn't have much time to pack my own stuff. Why hadn't I answered that first call and just come home? "I want you to take Arietta to Emmett and Rosalie's house - the directions are on the map - then I want you to go to Alice and Jasper in Forks."

"Wait, you're splitting me and Arietta up?" I asked

"It's the safest way." Dad said, "Together you'd attract attention. You need to blend in as a human, attract no attention, and let no one know who you really are."

"You need to-" Mom stopped, and we all sensed vampire's on our property. "They're here." She whispered. They were banging on the heavily bolted front door. They weren't knocking, they were trying to bust it down. "Go! Take care of your sister, Renesmee. I love you."

I grabbed the bag with my stuff in and held my hand up to catch the keys Dad threw towards me. "Come on Ari, let's go."

I hurried her out of the back door and into Dad's Aston Martin Vanquish. The 'special occasions' car. This didn't feel much like a special occasion. I chucked my bag in the back and prised Arietta's backpack from her arms and did the same with that. I started the car and screeched out of the driveway without looking back. The lack of vampires standing outside the open front door meant that they'd succeeded in breaking into the house. I didn't want to think about how much danger my parents were in, because I knew that more than anything, they wanted me and Arietta safe. I might have insisted on staying to meet the danger with them, if it wasn't for Arietta. She was 9, and her parents were in serious danger. She needed _someone_ to take care of her and get her to safety.

I drove way above the speed limit until we were out of the small town of Santa Rosa, heading down to San Francisco. I reached around and dug the map Mom had told me about out of my bag - not worrying about watching the road, because of my natural vampire driving skills. I was going south when I should be going North, towards Washington. Emmett and Rosalie lived about 11 hours away, by my calculations, in a place called Chehalis in Washington. I also worked out that if I went to stay in Forks with Alice and Jasper, I would be about a 3 hours drive away from Arietta. I could go and visit her. If it was an emergency, I could be there in 10 minutes, tops. Speed limits weren't an issue.

That made me feel a little better, but I still didn't like the fact that I was being separated from my sister. Especially when we were all in danger. I'd always been her protector. I'd held her hand when I took her to the park, cleaned up her cuts when she fell over, bought her candy and promised not to tell Mom and Dad. I'd taken her in for her first day of school, sorted out any kid who tried to cross her, helped her with homework, and comforted her when her big crush on the guy two grades above her didn't know she existed. She was my baby sister, and her whole life I'd been holding her protectively as we hid from the monster who lived under the bed.

And now I was leaving her with two people I hadn't even met before. But, Mom and Dad trusted them, and that meant that I trusted them too.

It was then that I realised that I hadn't heard Arietta speak the whole time since I got back to the house. I turned and saw her practically trembling in her seat. Oh Christ, how was a 9 year old supposed to deal with all this?

"Hey, Ari." I said softly, "You okay?"

She turned to look at me, "I don't want to leave Renesmee!"

"I know, honey." I said, "But it's best for everyone. It's only for a little while I promise. And you're going to go and stay with Aunt Rosalie and Uncle Emmett."

"I don't even know them." Arietta said

"Well, here's your chance to get to know them!" I said, trying to be optimistic, "Mom and Dad like them, they trust them. I'm sure they're lovely, and they're family. Family matters, remember?"

"Why haven't they bothered to come and see us already then?" Arietta asked. I grimaced.

"I don't think Mom and Dad told them about us." I said, "But they'll know soon enough, and I'm sure they'll be happy to meet their nieces."

Arietta didn't say anything else, and we drove in silence for the next few hours. It was almost 10 o'clock, and Arietta had fallen asleep. I watched her, making sure she was really asleep before letting out a long, distressed sigh. This was bad. Really bad. I supposed I should come up with some kind of plan. Dad had said that we needed to hide, to blend in and let no one know who we were. Blending in with names like Renesmee and Arietta Cullen was going to be hard.

Okay, so we needed fake identities. That was fine. I would be...Poppy Moore. That was a fairly plain, blending-in kind of name. Arietta could be...Kate Jackson. Hopefully, no one would see us together, but if they did we would say we were cousins. I was 17 and Arie-_ Kate_, was 9. It was easier to keep our real ages. I suddenly felt like I was playing an imaginary game like when I was little. I'd invent characters for me and my friends, or for me and Arietta to play. One day we'd be high school girls, and the next we'd be sisters, roommates, Moms and Dads - they all had their backstories and we could play for hours.

But this wasn't a game. This was real life, I reminded myself.

Arietta stirred in her sleep. It was a good thing I was half-vampire, which made sleep a luxury and not a necessity, otherwise I would have fallen asleep at the wheel. By 4.30am we were still a good half hour away from the house. I wanted to get there as soon as possible, but I decided to wait until it was actually day time to arrive. I knew they were vampires and would be up all night anyway, but it still seemed to go against social graces to turn up in the early hours of the morning to a total strangers house and drop the massive bombshell that my nine year old sister would be living with them for a while.

So I waited on the side of the road until 9 o'clock rolled round, and then started the engine again. Arietta woke up as I drove the last 30 minutes of the trip, but she didn't say anything. I pulled up outside number 18, and looked up at the house. It was fairly big - I estimated at least 3 bedrooms, which seemed like more than enough for one couple who didn't sleep anyway. The door was an interesting shade of purple, but apart from that the house looked completely normal.

"Look, they've got a massive garden, Ari." I said, "And look at all the flowers! You remember when I showed you how to plant flowers? Maybe Aunt Rosalie will let you do some gardening."

Arietta just sniffed. I sighed, and opened the door, grabbing Arietta's backpack and handing it to her, before grabbing the letter addressed _Rose & Emmett_ and walking up towards the front door, Arietta trailing behind me. I raised my hand to knock on the bright purple door when it opened. Of course they had already sensed vampire's on their property - even if we were only half vampires. Standing in the doorway was a 6'5" muscly vampire with short brown hair and golden eyes, and standing next to him was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen. She was noticeably shorter than the guy, but I guessed that wasn't exactly hard, and had gorgeous curly golden blonde hair tumbling past her shoulders. I knew all vampires had dazzling beauty, but _seriously_! I knew instantly that this was Emmett and Rosalie.

They took in the sight of me on their doorstep with surprise. The shock grew on their faces as their eyes drifted from me to Arietta. I remembered what Mom had said about child vampires. They probably thought I'd brought a monster to kill them both. Well, I suppose they were pretty safe as vampires with a hundred years on me and my sister.

"B...Bella?" Rosalie asked, narrowing her eyes at me, as if trying to figure out where she knew me from. Bella? _Mom_? She had mistaken me for my _Mom? _I supposed that physically, Mom was only a year older than me now, and I did get told a lot that we looked similar, but...wow.

"Uh, actually," I began carefully, not entirely sure how to bring this up. Mom had said that vampire's didn't usually have children with humans - in fact, the way she had said it made me suspect that they just didn't, full stop. "I'm Bella's daughter."

Rosalie's eyebrows shot up. I don't think she believed me. "Right."

"Renesmee Cullen." I said, "And this is Arietta, my sister." Rosalie's eyes lingered on Arietta, still wary of her. "She's not some monster child vampire!" I blurted before I could stop myself. Rosalie's eyebrows went up further. "I mean, she is a vampire and she's a child but...I'm not explaining myself very well. Here!" I pushed the letter into Rosalie's hands, "I dunno what it says, but my Mom said to give it to you. Our family's in danger and my parents said you could help."

Rosalie read the letter quickly, and Emmett read over her shoulder. I waited patiently as they read, and then they both looked up to stare at me, mouths hanging open. "I don't believe this. I really don't." Rosalie muttered, "I thought they'd run off to turn Bella without any trouble. I never thought...it didn't even cross my mind."

"Why would it?" Emmett asked, "This is insane. I always knew Bella was crazy, but seriously? Having vampire babies? That chick is weird."

I narrowed my eyes, but I could tell that he was joking. Whatever kind of relationship my parents had had with these people, I sensed that it was a good one. They must have been close once. Before I came along and screwed everything up by making them go into hiding. Oh God, was all of this my fault?

"So, you need us to take the kid?" Emmett asked.

I looked up, my protectiveness putting a fierce look in my eyes, "I take my sister's safety very seriously. I need to know she'll be safe here."

"She's Edward's daughter alright." Emmett said, with a grin, "Of course she'll be safe here. We're happy to help, right Rose?"

"You're family." Rosalie said, "We'd do anything for Edward and Bella."

I didn't know what was in that letter, but it must have explained everything because the couple were no longer looking at Arietta like she was about to go on a mad killing spree around their town. They were looking at her like...well, like an aunt and uncle should look at their niece.

"Alright Kiddo, listen up." I said, lowering myself to Arietta's height so I could look in her eyes. "Your name is Kate Jackson, you're 9 years old and this is your older sister and her husband, okay? Your parents have gone away for important business, so you're staying here until they get back. No one can know who you really are, or that you're half vampire, or anything about our real family. People probably won't see us together, but if they do, just say that I'm Poppy Moore and I'm your cousin. You get all that?"

Arietta didn't say anything, but she nodded slightly. "Good. Now listen, Ari. I need you to be really brave, okay? I'm gunna visit you whenever I can, but I have to go live somewhere else. I can be here really fast if you ever need me though, and Emmett and Rosalie will keep you safe."

"You'll keep me safe." She finally said, "Why can't you just keep me safe? You always do!"

"I know, I've always kept you safe, and I always will." I told her, "But the safest thing for you now is to not be with me. I know you'll be safe here."

"How do you know?" She asked, "You've only just met them!"

"True." I said, "But Mom and Dad trust them, and that's good enough for me, which means it's good enough for you too."

"I don't want you to leave Renesmee!" Arietta said with a sob, tears spilling down her cheeks. I brushed them away with my thumb. "Can't you stay with me?"

"I wish I could." I told her, "But it's safer this way. I know you're going to be fine."

"But what about you?" She wailed

"What about me?" I asked

"What if you're not safe?" She asked

I laughed. "Don't you worry about me, I can take care of myself." I felt Rosalie and Emmett's eyes on me, as if to say _no you can't. _It was strange to see people who had been alive for over a century, but who looked only a few years older than myself. I had to remind myself that these were adults - my aunt and uncle - and not schoolmates or friends. "Besides, I'm gunna go drop the bombshell on Alice and Jasper and see if I can beg two complete stranger vampires to let me sleep on their couch."

Arietta's eyes widened, "Oh Renesmee! Do you think they'll be really mean? Will they be mad at you for showing up? Will they really make you sleep on the couch the whole time?"

"Arietta!" I said, "I was joking. I'll be fine."

"Alice and Jasper will be happy to have you." Rosalie put in, "Alice has probably seen you coming." Then she stopped, as if suddenly realizing something. She turned to Emmett, "Why hasn't Alice foreseen them?"

"Foreseen us?" I echoed. Rosalie looked like she was about to explain, but Emmett cut her off.

"They've had to deal with enough today, let's not pile too much information on them at once." He said, "I'm sure Alice will figure it out."

I checked the time on my phone. It was after 10 o'clock and it was going to take over 3 hours to get to Forks. I should probably get a move on if I wanted to get there with enough time to explain properly. "I'm sorry to drop this bombshell and leave, but I really should go."

"Of course." Rosalie said, "You're welcome here anytime. We'll take good care of your sister, I promise."

I nodded. Emmett called "Say hi to Alice and Jasper from us!" as I began to turn away, and then I felt a pair of tiny but strong arms clinging to my waist.

"Don't leave me Renesmee!" Arietta sobbed. I groaned inwardly, and prised her off of me.

"I'll come back real soon, I promise, 'kay?" I said, "In the mean time, you be good for your new found aunt and uncle, right?" Arietta nodded glumly. "What's your name?"

"Kate Jackson." Arietta recited

"And who are these people?" I asked

"This is my older sister Rosalie and her husband Emmett." Arietta said, "You're my cousin Poppy."

"And you're here because...?" I prompted

"My parents had to leave for important business, so I'm staying here until they get back." Arietta said.

I nodded. "Good. Well done, Ari. I have to go now. I love you."

"I love you too." Arietta said, wiping her tears away.

"See you later, little sister." I said as I left.

"See you later, big sister." Arietta replied.

I got back into the car, waving at Arietta before driving away in the direction of Forks. I let my fake smile drop as I became out of sight. I'd been trying to make things seem better for Arietta's sake, but really I knew that there was nothing to smile or be optimistic about. I had no idea what had happened to my parents, they could even be dead, and I was leaving my sister with total strangers, albeit nice ones.

It was 1.30 in the afternoon when I pulled up outside Alice and Jasper's house. It was smaller than Rosalie and Emmett's, but it still looked expensive and nice. It was relatively normal except for the purple door, just like Rosalie and Emmett's. That was helpful in finding the right house, at least. I took a deep breath, grabbed my bag from the back of the car and stepped into the driveway of the house that I was supposed to be living in indefinitely.

I made my way up to the front door and knocked. No one answered. I turned to my vampire instincts. There was no one home. They must be out somewhere. I sat down on the doorstep with my bag next to me and waited.

It was an hour before anything happened.

"Is that Edward's Vanquish?" I heard a tinkling voice ask in surprise

"I...think so." Came a male voice, uncertain. Two vampires turned into the driveway; a tiny pixie-like woman with short black hair, and a tall guy with long-ish blonde hair. Alice and Jasper. Alice's eyes flicked to me in shock.

"Bella?" She asked, uncertain. That was twice in one day.

I stood up and began walking towards them. "Hi...uh, sorry for turning up like this. I'm Renesmee."

The two vampires stared at me for a moment, and then exchanged a look.

"Renesmee Cullen." I said. Their eyes widened.

"Cullen?" Alice asked, "As in related to us Cullen?"

I should probably explain. I hadn't done a very good job earlier, and it didn't seem like I was doing a good job now. "I'm Bella and Edward's daughter."

"What?" Alice practically squealed, "No way! They can't have a daughter!"

"They have two." I said, "Me and my little sister Arietta. I just dropped her off at Emmett and Rosalie's. Look I'm not very good at explaining this, but uh...ah what the heck."

I handed Alice the letter with _Alice & Jasper_ printed on it. "I guess my parent's thought that you guys would be able to help. I dunno what the letter says, but it seemed to convince Emmett and Rosalie to take in Arietta, so..." I trailed off as I watched their faces grow confused.

"Alice, you didn't see any of this in the future?" Jasper asked

"No." Alice said. Her voice came out part confused, part worried, and a rather large part annoyed. "I can hardly see anything where Bella is concerned anymore! I...I guess I probably wouldn't foresee children...but it seems like such a big thing to miss!"

The letter seemed to have them convinced that I _was_ Bella and Edward's daughter. I watched them as they shared another look. Then Alice turned to me and beamed. "Of course you can stay with us Renesmee! You're family! Bella and Edward's daughter! We'll do whatever we can to help you and keep you safe!"

I smiled, "Thanks. I guess I'm still getting used to all this. Today I found out that my whole life was a lie." My smile faulted and Jasper frowned. "And now I guess I'm here and I don't know what to do next."

"Well, you'll come inside for a start." Alice said, "Come on!"

Alice was so strange, how she turned from the mature adult telling me she'd help to keep me safe, to the bouncy teenager she physically looked like. I followed Alice and Jasper inside, picking up my bag from the doorstep.

"That's all you brought? Where are all the clothes?" Alice asked. I shrugged.

"Mom packed all my stuff in a rush." I said, "I got home and left straight away."

"Oh God, _Bella_ packed your clothes?" Alice asked, "You are _so_ screwed."

I laughed a little. The one thing Mom had ever told me about Alice was that she was a bit of a fashion queen, and forever complaining about Mom's dress choice. I could see where Alice was coming from sometimes.

"Alice," Jasper said softly, "Why don't you sort out a room for Renesmee and let her settle in?" He turned to me, "You must be tired. You've had a very long stressful day."

I _was_ tired. Not in a way that I desperately needed sleep - the vampire part of me meant that I never needed to sleep if I chose not to - but mentally I was exhausted, and I would give anything to just lie down and let my troubles melt away as I relaxed.

"Right!" Alice said. She bit her lip. "The second bedroom is full of clothes and stuff, but the attic is practically a third bedroom. There's a bed and a closet and windows and everything." She looked nervous, "Do you think that will be okay? Or should I clear out the bedroom?"

"The attic will be fine!" I said, "Anywhere is fine. I'm really grateful for this."

"It's a nice room, really!" Alice said, tugging me up the stairs by my hand as if we hadn't just met five minutes ago, "I decorated it myself as a sort of guest room. Of course, we don't really have guests all that much."

Alice led me up some steps and opened the door. The large space wasn't really an attic at all. It had been completely converted into a spacious room, decorated mostly in black and white, which some splashes of bright pink and turquoise accessories dotted around the room. It really was pretty. Just the right sort of room for a girl my age. It was like destiny.

"It's lovely Alice!" I said. Alice beamed.

"Really? Do you like it?" She asked. I nodded. "You'll be okay up here?" I nodded again, "Uh, you're half human, right? Do you sleep?"

"If I want to." I said, "It's more of a choice than a necessity."

"Oh. That's cool!" Alice said, "I've got so many questions to ask you, but I'll leave you to rest and settle in. If you need absolutely anything, just help yourself or ask me or Jasper. We'll be right downstairs."

"Thanks Alice." I said, "I can see why my parents loved you so much."

Alice's face lit up, "See you in a bit, Renesmee."

"Bye." I said, and Alice shut the door.

I turned to face my new bedroom.

It really was beautiful. I sat down on the big double bed cross-legged and looked around the room. How long was I going to be living here? I suddenly realised that I had no idea when it would be safe to go back to my parents. If it would_ ever_ be safe. If there would even be parents to go back to...

I'd been told to run, and told to hide. But I hadn't been told for how long. I hadn't been told what my parents were doing, or what they expected me to do for God knows how long. I just had to go with it.

So here I was.

17 years old, and still hiding from monsters under the bed.

* * *

**Heyy, so what do you think? Interested in the story? Maybe? Review! Please!**

**Any questions? :)**

**This is the longest chapter I've ever written on Fanfiction (Over 8000 words!) and I'm going to try and keep it as long chapters, which means it might take longer to update that my other stories, but there should be an update about once a week, maybe a little more or less.**


	2. Survival Guide

** Hearts of Ice**

**Chapter Two: Survival guide**

I slept for _seventeen hours_. Jesus, I guess I really had been tired. I hadn't slept since I woke up the morning of the day everything had gone wrong. _That day_. That day was officially the worst day of my life. Josh, my parents, my home, my safety, Arietta...I didn't know what else I had to lose. I slid out of bed, rubbing my eyes and looking down at myself. My clothes had been crumpled in my sleep and my hair was a complete mess.

I opened my bag, praying that Mom had at least put in a hair brush and some make-up. She had, along with a bunch of clothes (At least they were clothes from my own wardrobe, so I had some reasonable fashion choices) my scrapbook, and a bunch of stuff I didn't recognise. I started pulling the stuff out, forgetting about my original reason for opening the bag.

There were six brown envelopes, with Dad's elegant script labelling each with a name; Renesmee Cullen, Jessica Orman, Hannah Webster, Monica Smith, Arietta Cullen, and Lucy King. I opened the one with my name written on it to find my passport, birth certificate, and a debit card in my name. I already had a bank account, but I supposed this was Dad's way of giving me money to get by. I opened the envelope with Arietta's name to find her own passport and birth certificate. Then I looked at the other envelopes, puzzled. I'd never heard these names before in my life. I slid them open to reveal the contents. Each had a passport and birth certificate, and all but Arietta Cullen and Lucy King had debit cards and drivers licenses. I looked at the passports and grinned. Renesmee, Jessica, Hannah, and Monica all had the same photo; me. Arietta and Lucy's passports had a photo of Arietta. Fake IDs.

Renesmee Cullen and Arietta Cullen held the complete truth, but I spotted more lies than just the names on the other IDs. Jessica Orman was 19 and had a drivers license from New York. Hannah Webster was 21 and came from South Carolina, and Monica Smith was 16 and came from Tennessee. Lucy King was 10 and came from Florida. Arietta would be thrilled to learn she could pretend to be a year older, and come from her favourite state.

I could only imagine how much money was on each of the debit cards that came with my fake IDs. It was probably a lot. Thanks Dad.

I placed the fake documents aside and looked into the bag again. There was another envelope - this time larger and white. Instead of Dad's writing, Mom had scrawled _Renesmee_ on it in biro. I opened the sealed envelope and took out the letter inside. Halfway through reading, I realised that this information would have been useful a little sooner.

_Renesmee,_

_If you are reading this then the worst has come. I'm sorry we didn't tell you earlier, but we thought it would be best to keep it secret from you as well as everyone else. You see, you are special Renesmee. You and Arietta are half-vampires-half-humans. Well, you already know that, but you might not have realised that you are _extremely_ rare. If I managed to talk to you before you left, I will have explained all about the Volturi and children vampires. If I didn't get to talk to you, you'll have to ask Alice and Jasper._

_Here are some tips you're going to need to deal with the Cullen vampires. Of course, you have an advantage over me - I was full human and you are half vampire - but still, you're going to need a little help._

_First, drop your sister at Emmett and Rosalie's. Warning; Emmett is huge and looks like he could squash you with one foot, but I try to think of him more as a giant cuddly teddy bear...Warning no. 2; Rosalie. She's...well, you'll see what I mean when you see her. She can be pretty scary, but she's a good person. I trust them to take care of Arietta and to keep her safe. If you ever need someone with extreme muscle, Emmett's your guy. If you need someone to sort out your car, Rosalie's your girl. Oh, and she looks like a freaking fashion model slash goddess. Just a heads up._

_They probably won't believe you at first if you say that Edward and I are your parents. Give them the letter addressed to them, it explains everything and tells them what I want them to do. They won't give you any hassle after that, and I'm sure they'll welcome you with open arms. I'd ask you to stay here to, except it's safer if you and Arietta split up._

_So now you should go to Alice and Jaspers. Alice can see the future - she has visions and can see the outcome of people's decisions. She has trouble seeing the future of you and Arietta however, because you are half-breeds. She's gunna be really annoyed when she finds that out. Also, beware of Alice; she _will_ turn you into a Barbie doll and dress you up to her heart's content. Avoid her hair tongs at all costs. I'm serious. But, all that aside, Alice will love you instantly and you can't help loving her back. You'll probably end up being more like best friends and sisters than strangers and aunt and niece. Jasper is...well, his self control is not what it could be. He's vegetarian like the rest of us, but he has the least control. But I still trust him, and you're safe around him. He's an empath - he can feel the emotions of people around him and influence those emotions. He's great to have around when you're upset or mad. Oh, and you wouldn't think it at first, but he's seriously badass. Ask him about the confederate army and the newborn wars, and you'll see what I mean. Except, maybe don't open with that subject..._

_They probably won't believe you either, but again the letter will explain everything. They'll tell Esme and Carlisle - your grandparents - and they can help out too. Esme is the kindest, most motherly woman you will ever meet. She'll instantly take you under her wing and do anything she can to help you. Carlisle is extremely kind too, and he's got immense control that I could never hope to match. He's a doctor and he's always got theories and scientific questions and things, because he's super clever. He's been around for centuries, so if you ever need information he's probably the one to go to._

_I know you'll be welcome there, and you'll be safe. You should go to Forks high school, and blend in - just like you have been your whole life. It's the school that I used to go to, with all the other Cullens. Just one little thing - that school's parking lot is a death trap. I know you're a vampire and no where near as clumsy as I was but _please_ be careful!_

_Stay away from La Push. There are people there who know about vampires, and they wouldn't want to see a new kind of half-breed vampire, so please don't go past the border? Alice and Jasper can show you where it's safe to go and where you should stop. Apart from that, you can go wherever you want, as long as you are careful and stay hidden. Don't go around shouting that you're Renesmee Cullen, right?_

_I can't tell you too much in a letter like this. Hopefully one day I will be able to explain all of this to you. Look, I'm not going to lie to you; this is very _very_ dangerous. There is a good chance that me or your father - or maybe even both of us - won't make it through to see you again. But you and Arietta _will_ survive, and if we die it will be to keep you alive. Remember that._

_Don't try to contact us - it's too risky and the Volturi might intercept the message. We'll contact you when it's safe, but until then you need to cut off all ties you have to us. It's the safest way._

_So, here's your crash course on the Cullens. I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out by yourself._

_Stay safe, Renesmee._

_I love you._

_Mom_

I felt tears spilling down my cheeks as my Mom confirmed what I had already suspected. There was a good chance I would never see my parents again, and it was basically all my fault.

There was a built in bathroom to my attic room (Nice touch, Alice) and I went inside and turned on the shower at full heat. I locked the door and stepped inside the shower, feeling my troubles melt away for a moment. No thinking about family dramas, no thinking about danger, or death, or the Volturi. No thinking about vampires, full stop.

Except, that left me to only think about humans.

And if I was thinking about humans, the only logical path was to start thinking about _him_. After everything that had happened, I'd pushed Josh right out of my mind. What did a stupid boyfriend drama matter anymore? Except that it still hurt. A lot.

I used the toiletries that had been in the shower, and when I got out and looked in the mirror I tried to pretend it was the shampoo that had made my eyes red. I changed into denim shorts and a print tee, which was basically the only outfit I ever wore, and towel dried my hair until it was light and bouncy. I put a splash of make up on and looked in the mirror. I looked so...normal. I looked like I looked every other day of my life. It was as if I wasn't even hiding in a strangers attic from dangerous vampires.

I opened the door out onto the hallway and immediately heard voices from downstairs. I could hear Jasper and Alice talking quietly, and - being only _half_ supernaturally gifted - could only catch the odd word. "...human...Volturi...dangerous...Edward..." I didn't like the sound of the conversation. They stopped talking abruptly when I took a step forward and the floor creaked.

They were waiting for me when I reached the bottom of the stairs, smiling encouragingly. Alice came straight forward and hugged me, taking me a little by surprise. "Feeling better, Renesmee?"

"Much, thanks." I said, smiling back, "I could sleep on that bed forever."

It was true - it was the plushiest, comfiest bed I had ever slept on. It seemed weird that in such dire situations, I would find so much comfort from something so irrelevant as a bed.

"Great!" Alice said, "Because we have _so_ much catching up to do! I mean, where have you _been_ the last seventeen years?"

I vaguely remembered that I hadn't told Alice my age. It must have been in the letter, I suppose. "We lived in New York for a while when I was little, and then we moved down to Texas when Arietta was born, and we've been living in California for the last six years."

"Oh! Jazz is from Texas, aren't you Jasper?" Alice said, turning to Jasper who nodded.

"Houston, Texas - born and raised." He said, and I heard a southern accent drifting into his words. Right after we'd moved from Texas to California - when I was eleven - people had told me I had a southern accent. I could still talk with it if I wanted to.

"We were really close to Houston, actually." I said, making conversation, "We lived in Austin, a couple of hours away. Mom used to take me to Houston to go shopping at the Galleria."

"Bella...shopping?" Alice asked, obviously confused

"With a lot of convincing." I added, remembering the time I'd sat in the car and refused to get out until she took me shopping. Of course, she had only been a vampire for 6 months at the time, and was a lot stronger than nine year old me, but when she pulled me out of the car I shrieked until Dad came out and said that he'd take me shopping if I was going to make such a fuss. That had been the first time Dad had taken me to Bayou Place, the entertainment megaplex in Houston - we'd seen a movie and he'd watched me eat dinner and then we had seen a play. That had also been the day I had convinced my Dad to spend $1000 on clothes to fill my wardrobe - he hadn't made a fuss about money, as we had so much of it. It had all kind of gone downhill from there, and I suppose you _could_ say I was spoilt...just a tiny bit. Unfortunately, the minute I turned sixteen my parents decided I needed to be more independent, and that I had to work for my own money and get a weekly allowance of $20. It was more than enough to live a normal happy seventeen year old life, but I sure missed the days when I could phone Daddy up and ask for money like a bratty little rich kid. Although, with my four new debit cards upstairs, maybe my money troubles would soon be forgotten.

"But what have you been doing all that time?" Alice asked

"Normal stuff." I said with a shrug, "School, friends, work."

A thought entered my mind that I should probably ring up my boss and tell her I wouldn't be coming into work tomorrow, unless I fancied the 11 hour car journey back to Santa Rosa. I made myself a mental note to do that later.

"Boyfriends?" Alice asked with a wink.

"Uh...yeah, I guess." I said, my mind instantly going to Josh. Cheating, lying, _gorgeous_ Josh. Gorgeous? Had I said that? Whoops. Jasper frowned at me as my thoughts turned to Josh, and I remembered the letter from Mom. He could tell what I was feeling. And what was I feeling? I was upset, I mean, who wouldn't be? And of course I was angry. I guess I missed him...already. And, if I'm totally and completely honest I still loved him.

"Ohhh, spill!" Alice said

"There's nothing to tell, really." I said. In all of the drama and panic when I had got home, I hadn't even told my Mom what had happened. I don't even think Dad had time to read and process my thoughts.

"I don't believe that!" Alice said. Jasper gave her a look. I guess he could tell that I didn't want to talk about it. He really _was_ useful, like Mom had said. I wondered what kind of relationship my parents had had with Jasper. They had gone to school together, lived together...they had been friends and they had been family, but I realised that I didn't know anything about what they used to get up to.

"Oh, uh...sorry." Alice muttered. She quickly recovered, beaming at me again, "So, tell us all about being half human! Do you eat human food?"

"Yeah, but I drink blood as well." I said. It was a little weird talking about vampire stuff with complete strangers, but I suppose they were vampires too. "I need both."

"We'll have to buy some food, I guess." Alice said, biting her lip.

"It's okay, I can get some." I said, "My Dad gave me some money to use."

"Don't be silly!" Alice said, "We'll go out later and get some, but you can order take out if you're hungry before then."

"You don't have to go to any trouble-" I began, but Alice rolled her eyes.

"Oh, you are so like Bella!" She said, "Do you know, the first time we met her we cooked her this meal because she was human and all, but she had already ate because she had tried to be polite as we don't eat and she didn't want to make a fuss." That seemed perfectly logical to me, but there you go. "She was forever complaining about the cost of things, and insisting that we didn't spend money on her. But really, we have _infinite _amounts of money, so what's a little food going to harm?"

I got the feeling that most people didn't win arguments against Alice. She was going to buy me food, whether I wanted her to or not. "Well...thanks."

"Your welcome!" Alice said, beaming again, "Now, Esme and Carlisle are coming over later and I'm sure Carlisle will have all sorts of scientific questions to ask you so I had better stop or you'll get bored." I was about to say that I didn't mind, but Alice didn't give me time to speak before she carried on, "We'll have to get you enrolled at the high school, and I'll take you on a little tour of Forks and show you where all the best shops are, and then we-"

"Alice." Jasper interrupted softly, "You're getting carried away."

"Am not!" Alice said indignantly. Jasper gave her a look again, but I could see the fondness in his eyes, like he was trying not to laugh at his wife. "What? Shut up, Jazz."

He raised his eyebrows but didn't say anything more. Instead, he turned to me, "Is there anything you would like to do today Renesmee? We can show you around town, or we could go shopping for some supplies seeing as you didn't bring much, or we could just stay home if you wanted."

I considered. What _did_ I want to do? If I was back in Santa Rosa, I'd probably be hanging out with Josh, pulling shifts at the diner I worked at, down the smoothie bar with my friends, or taking Arietta out somewhere or other. But what was there to do in Forks? From what I had seen on the drive here, there wasn't much to do. Still, I should make an effort to be social with my hosts, I guess.

"I don't mind. It would be cool to see the town where my parents lived." I said. Jasper smiled and Alice became exited again.

"I'll show you Bella's old house!" She said, "Oh, and the school of course! That's where they met - _so_ romantic!"

"They never really told me how they met." I admitted. Alice gaped at me.

"They never even told you? It's the greatest love story since Romeo and Juliet!" Alice said, "It's _better_ than Romeo and Juliet!"

"They told me a little..." I said, trying to remember. It had been a long time ago, and I had never really thought to ask for more information. "That they had met when Mom moved to Forks to stay with Charlie, when she was still human, and that they got married really young and Mom got pregnant with me."

Alice's eyes widened, "That's it? You just summed up two years of romance, drama, tragedy, battles, friendships, danger, sadness, love, and supernatural events in one measly sentence that makes them sound like any other middle aged human couple!"

Alice sounded...angry. Was it my fault that I hadn't taken more interest in my parent's love lives? "Uh...what happened?"

"Well," Alice said, sounding like she was about to launch into a massive speech, "Bella moved to Forks to live with Charlie, and on the first day of school she sees Edward and sits next to him in Biology. Edward finds this hard, as he wants to drink her blood so he goes to Alaska for a while to avoid the temptation of killing her - bit gory, but it gets better." Alice was talking so fast I was having trouble following what she was saying. "Bella almost gets killed when some guy called Tyler nearly crushes her with his van in the school parking lot, but Edward comes in to be the hero and save her - Aww! Only trouble is, Bella is a tiny bit suspicious that Edward managed to cross the parking lot in a split second. Edward starts ignoring Bella, not wanting her to find out what he really is. Bella goes to La Push and that pesky boy tells her some story about vampires and puts the idea in Bella's head, and from there she starts to guess what Edward is. Bella - being the trouble magnet she is - gets in a spot of bother with some grotesque human boys, but Edward comes in again to save the day. He takes Bella out to dinner and reveals that he can read everyone's mind except for hers - great twist, right? Bella tells Edward that she suspects he is a vampire and Edward confirms her theory. So, they start dating and have their first kiss! Bella comes and meets us lot and we all love her. Well, actually that's not really true because Rosalie just got mad like she does with everything and Jazz was having trouble keeping control with a human in the house, but anyway we all _would_ love her."

"We decided to go play Baseball and it was all going well and it was fun, but then these vampires showed up - James, Laurent, and Victoria. They drink human blood so everything got a bit mad what with there being a human there and all. Nothing happened but James got pretty annoyed, and we thought he would probably come back for Bella so we left Forks. James tricked Bella into meeting him and he bit her. She was halfway through the transformation when we turned up and once again Edward saves her life by killing James and sucking the venom out of Bella so she wouldn't turn into a vampire. Bella wakes up in hospital but she's okay. Edward takes her to the prom even though she's dead set against it. And then she tells Edward that she wants to be a vampire so she can be with him forever, an idea which _he_ is dead set against."

"Bella's 18th birthday comes round and we - and by we I mean I - want to throw her a party, even though she insists she doesn't want one. At the party-" Alice stopped abruptly, taking a break for the first time in her speaking. She looked at Jasper, concern laced in her eyes. Jasper nodded at her and Alice went on, "Bella got a papercut and started bleeding. We all went a bit crazy but Jasper's control isn't quite as good as the rest of us. Edward thought he was going to hurt Bella so he pushed her out of the way but she ended up getting even more hurt and...well, no one attacked anyone, but Edward came to the realisation that our world was dangerous for a human. So, Edward split up with Bella and we all left Forks. Bella fell apart without Edward and did all these crazy dangerous things to try and hear his voice or something like that."

"I foresaw her jumping off a cliff and we all thought she was dead, when really she was doing this whack thing called cliff diving which that idiot told her about. Edward, thinking she was dead, decided that he wanted to die too so he went to the Volturi and was going to reveal himself to humans so that the Volturi would have a reason to kill him. Meanwhile, I came to Forks and found Bella alive, so we rushed off to Volterra to stop Edward, and I gained a super cool Porsche. We almost didn't get there in time, but Bella saved him in a really romantic and dramatic moment. Then of course the Volturi wanted to know why Bella was a human, so we promised that she would become a vampire in the future."

"Edward and Bella got back together and we moved back to Forks and everyone was happy - Aww! But it didn't last for long! Victoria - you remember, from the baseball match? She was James mate and she was angry about Edward killing him, and she figured that the best way to get to Edward would be to kill Bella! There's a whole lot of trouble with the La Push boys and one of them even tries to steal Bella away from Edward, but they're too madly in love for that, obviously! Bella asks again to be changed to a vampire, and Edward agrees, so long as she agrees to marry him first. And that's how they got engaged really. So, while that's going on, Victoria's forming a newborn army and then there's this massive battle between us and them, and Edward and Bella camp up in the mountains so they'll be safe, but Victoria comes up to find them! Victoria's about to kill Edward but Bella cuts herself to distract Victoria with the blood and save Edward's life, and he then kills Victoria."

"With all the danger out of the way, they _finally_ get married! It was such a beautiful ceremony! I helped organise it and everything, and oh, Bella looked stunning in her dress! They were going to wait until they got back from the honeymoon to change Bella, but...well, they never came back from the honeymoon. They rang us up to say they had found a place to live, and we haven't seen them since! I guess you know the rest of the story..." Alice trailed off, looking thoughtful, "Of course, that's only a brief description, there's no way I could tell you everything! It would take far too long!"

Brief? I gaped at her. She had just told me a whole life story! It was so much information to process and I couldn't help but wonder why my parents had classed this as "Not much to tell really, we met in school, fell in love and lived happily ever after." I had never in a million years imagined their story to be so...exciting, dangerous, and romantic! It was honestly like something out of a teen romance novel.

"Wow." Was all I could say.

"I think you've overwhelmed her a little, Alice." Jasper said

"No," I protested, "I just...I guess I never really saw my parents having an adventurous life like that."

Alice laughed, "They had their fair share of adventures alright! Come on, I'll show you all the Bella-Edward hotspots!"

"Alright, I just need to make a few calls first, if that's okay?" I said

"Of course!" Alice said, laughing again, "You don't have to ask Renesmee! I don't want you to feel like a guest here, you're family! Our home is your home!"

I smiled, "Thanks Alice."

"Go make your calls, we'll leave when you're ready!" Alice said, smiling back. I went back up to the attic and grabbed my phone from the bed. Right, first I had better call Mary, my boss, and let her know. I scrolled through my contacts. _Mary_ was right above _Mom_. I wanted so desperately to call her, but I knew I couldn't. I had to wait until she contacted me, like she'd said in her letter. It was too dangerous to try and call her, but that didn't mean the temptation wasn't there. I sighed and called Mary instead.

"Hi, Renesmee, what's up?" Mary asked. She was twenty years older than me, but half the time she acted like a teenager. I would even consider her my friend - like the other waitresses my age that I hung out with after my shift.

"I...uh..." I probably should have thought of what to say before I called. I sighed. Like a Band Aid. "I can't work at the diner tomorrow. In fact, I can't work there anymore full stop."

Mary didn't say anything for a few counts, before she said, "You're quitting?"

I felt bad. I loved my job at the diner, and I loved the other people that worked there. I didn't want to let them down, but what choice did I have? "I'm really sorry Mary, and I'm sorry it's such short notice! My family's had to move to stay with my Uncle in Florida. It's kind of a family emergency, there's no way around it."

"Oh. Well, I'm sorry to hear that you'll be leaving." Mary said, "But I guess it isn't your fault. We'll all miss you, Renesmee."

I felt so guilty. "I'll miss you all too."

"Good luck in Florida." She said

"Thanks." I said and I hung up before I could get any more upset. Now, I would need to ring the school and tell them than me and Arietta wouldn't be going there anymore. I suppose I would have to pretend to be my Mom. Not a problem, apparently I sounded just like her. I quickly looked up the number on the school's website and dialled. I explained to the receptionist, telling her the same story I'd given Mary and hung up before she could ask too many questions. I scrolled through my contacts. Who else would I need to ring? My eyes caught on one name that brought tears to my eyes all over again; Brooke. She had been my best friend since my first day of school in California. We'd been practically inseparable for the past six years. And I hadn't even said goodbye.

I dialled. "Hey Renesmee, what's happening?"

"Uh...quite a lot actually." I admitted to the phone

"Wanna meet up and talk about it? We can be at the smoothie bar in ten?" Brooke asked. That would be a challenge.

"I can't." I said, "I'm not in Santa Rosa."

"Why not?" Brooke asked, "Did you go on holiday without me?"

"No, no it's not really a holiday." I said

"Renesmee, what's going on?" Brooke asked, "Are you leaving town for a while, or what? Because you know we're going to a party next weekend and I want you to be back for it."

"I'm really sorry Brooke, I'm not going to be back by then." I said

"Why the hell not?" Brooke asked, "Where are you?"

"Florida." I said, the lie coming out too easily.

"What the blazes are you doing in Florida?" Brooke asked, "That's the other side of America!"

"I know where Florida is." I told her, "We're staying at my uncles. Family emergency."

"What kind of family emergency?" Brooke asked. I considered how to answer this.

"My other aunt and uncle died in a car crash," I began, "And they've got two daughters - 5 and 11 years old. My parent's are down as their legal guardians, but they don't want to move them out of Florida."

"Oh my God, Renesmee!" Brooke said, "That's awful! I'm so sorry!"

"Don't worry." I said, guilt creeping up on me at the lie.

"So you don't know when you'll be back?" Brooke asked

"No. But it probably won't be for a while." I said, "I'm sorry Brookey, I didn't even get to say goodbye."

"Don't worry! But promise we'll talk on the phone every day?" She said. I paused. That would be allowed right? I was supposed to stay away from my old life, but the Volturi wouldn't know anything about Brooke, and they wouldn't trace her back to me. "Promise me?"

"I promise." I said

"That's okay then." She said, "And hey, if you're gone for too long, I'll come out and visit you! I've always wanted to go to Florida!"

"Uh, yeah." I said, knowing that this would never happen, "That would be fun."

"So what's it like out there?" She asked

"It's alright." I said, "It's weird not being home. I miss California."

It was the first truthful thing I'd said since the conversation began.

"Already? You only just left, how are you going to survive?" Brooke asked. That was a good question.

"I'll be fine." I said, "Look Brooke, I really want to talk more, but my uncle's taking us around the town, can I call you back later tonight?"

"Sure, but remember the time difference - you're two hours ahead of me now!" She said

"Right." I said, knowing that I was still in the same time zone as Brooke was. "I'll call in the evening - _your_ time."

"Great!" Brooke said, "Talk to you later Renesmee!"

"See ya Brooke." I said, and I ended the call. Oh God, I was going to miss Brooke.

With all my phone calls done, I made my way back downstairs to find that Jasper had left and it was just Alice waiting for me. "Jazz is going to meet Esme and Carlisle." Alice explained, "They'll come back here to meet you later. But first, we're going on the Bella-Edward tour!"

She led me outside and stopped by a shiny yellow Porsche. She grinned at it, "I stole a car just like this when Bella and I went to Italy to stop Edward getting himself killed by the Volturi. He bought me the same car as a bribe to kidnap Bella so she wouldn't run off to La Push."

"Kidnap?" I asked

"Well, it wasn't really kidnapping." Alice said with a shrug, "I was just keeping her safe - Edward's orders."

I admired the shiny car, "It's really nice."

"Come on!" Alice said, opening the door, "Let the tour begin!"

She took me to Charlie's house, where Bella used to live. We didn't go inside because apparently Charlie had been funny with the Cullens ever since Mom and Dad took off never to be seen again. I wonder why...

Then she drove over to Esme and Carlisle's house - where all the Cullens used to live. Esme and Carlisle were out with Jasper, but Alice took me inside and showed me around briefly, before dragging me off to the next destination; Forks high school. She showed me the classroom where they had first met, and the exact spot where Bella had nearly been crushed by the van. Then Alice couldn't resist showing me the few shops that Forks had to offer, and then we stopped off at the store to buy some food for me. We were on our way back to the house, when I saw a sign directing us towards La Push.

"Hey, Alice?" I asked

"Uh-huh?" Alice asked, looking away from the road.

"My Mom told me to stay away from La Push, do you know why?" I asked

"Ahh," Alice said, as if she had been hoping I wouldn't ask, "You don't really need to know, Renesmee. There are people there who see vampires as enemies, and them finding out about a half-vampire-half-human isn't a good idea."

"But how would they find out?" I asked

"They can tell." Alice said, "It doesn't matter. We don't go on their land, and they don't go on ours. Hang on, I'll show you the border." Alice swung the car around and headed down a different road.

"But...why are vampires seen as enemies?" I asked

"Not all vampires are like us, Renesmee." Alice said, "There are vampires that kill innocent humans to quench their thirst for blood. We aren't dangerous, but most vampires are. The people living in La Push are part of a tribe called the Quileute tribe. Their legends teach that vampires should be killed in order to protect humans."

"Wow." I said. Alice pulled over in front of a sign reading 'Welcome to La Push'.

"This is where the border starts, naturally." Alice said, "It travels right round through the forest. I'll show you the whole length of it some other time, but we need to get back to the house now."

"You told me that Mom used to go to La Push." I said

"Did I?" Alice looked flustered

"Yeah, when you were telling me her and Dad's story." I said

"Ah, well Bella was human then." Alice said, "They didn't approve of her dating a vampire so they tried to convince her that he was dangerous and that they shouldn't be together. Obviously, it didn't work. Bella wouldn't be welcome there nowadays."

I thought about this as Alice turned the car around and headed back in the direction we came. "How do they know about vampires?"

"They have some bad history with them." Alice said, "A long time ago vampires weren't anywhere near as...discreet as they are now. The tribe knew all about vampires, and the legends have been past down through the generations. Most of the tribe don't believe them, but I guess some of them know that there is truth in there." Alice gave a short laugh, "From what Bella has told me about their legends, they make vampires come off pretty bad."

I sat in silence for the rest of the journey, thinking over all the information I'd been given. When we arrived home, there was a black Mercedes parked outside the house. "Carlisle's car." Alice explained as she pushed the front door open.

I was met with two new faces; a kind looking woman with a heart shaped face and caramel coloured hair, and a man with gentle eyes and collar-length blonde hair. Esme and Carlisle. They were both beaming at me.

"You must be Renesmee." Esme said, stepping forward, "We're very excited to meet you! Our very own granddaughter - who would have thought it?"

"Hi." I said, looking at my grandmother who didn't look more than 10 years older than me. In the last two days, I had met the six most attractive people I had ever seen in my life. It was quite depressing, really.

"Renesmee," Carlisle said, stepping forward and taking my hands in his, "I can't imagine what you've been through in the last few days."

I had been warned about Carlisle and Esme, and I prepared myself for a long afternoon of answering all his scientific questions about my half-breed existence, and all of her motherly concerns about where we'd been living, what we'd been doing, and how I was holding up.

It wasn't as bad as I had imagined, to be honest. It hurt to talk about everything, but I got to experience Jasper's gift! I could feel waves of calm, happy emotions hitting me whenever my mood started to drop, and Jasper would always smile when I nodded my thanks to him. He really was a star when it came to making a girl feel better. Carlisle and Esme left around midnight, and I trailed upstairs to the attic, tired from my long day, and collapsed onto the bed into a deep sleep.

* * *

**So, let me explain some stuff;**

**Bella and Edward don't want Renesmee going to La Push or meeting any of the wolves or even knowing about werewolves, for her own safety and because the wolves don't know that they had children.**

**In Eclipse, the Cullens and the wolves worked together and everything, but now they're back to enemies because after Edward and Bella never returned, the wolves assumed Bella was dead. They put the treaty back in place.**

**Any other questions? I'd be happy to answer anything :)**

**Sorry if I got any of the facts wrong when Alice explained the stories to Renesmee. I know it wasn't a very good summary of the books, but hey.**

**Please review!**

**Next chapter soon! :) :) :)**


	3. Hangovers

**Hearts of Ice**

**Chapter Three: Hangovers**

The next morning I was greeted with a massive bowl of cereal, four slices of toast, three waffles, a huge stack of pancakes, and a plate of bacon. I stared at the food. Did Alice expect me to eat all this? I looked over at her, and she shrugged.

"I wasn't sure what you liked, so I made everything." She said

"You could have asked and saved yourself the trouble." I suggested. Alice pondered this for a moment, then shook her head.

"Cooking is fun!" She said, "And I don't get to do it much anymore. You know I used to cook for Bella? Well, when Esme let go of her control of the kitchen, that is. Anyway, just eat whatever you want and leave the rest!"

I looked at the food. It seemed like a waste. Still, there was no way I could eat the mountain of food in front of me. Although, I _was_ rather hungry. And that was when it struck me that I hadn't eaten since before I left Santa Rosa. And I'd never even gotten to eat that pizza I'd bought, because I'd thrown it at Josh's face. That pizza sounded so good right now...

I turned my attention back to the food in front of me, grabbed the pancakes and put some bacon on top of them. Alice and Jasper watched me in amusement. I guess they didn't get to see people eat very often.

"Did you sleep okay?" Alice asked

"Great thanks." I said in between mouthfuls. I was _ravenous_. I made my way through the whole stack of pancakes, and started on the waffles.

"Good, because you have a big day ahead of you!" Alice said. I looked up from my waffles warily.

"What kind of big day?" I asked

"We're enrolling you at Forks High!" Alice said, "Today will be your first day of school!"

I stared at her, "_What_?"

"I know it's a bit soon, but your Mom said that she wanted you to start as soon as possible, so that you could blend in more." Alice said. I guessed Mom had written that in the letter she had given Alice and Jasper. I really needed to read that letter.

"Right." I said, "Umm, okay. What time does school start?"

"9.00am." Alice said. I looked at the clock on the wall and hissed out a curse - not stopping to apologize to my aunt and uncle, who were frowning at my language - before racing up the stairs to the attic. It was almost 8.30am now! I jumped into the shower and washed my hair at super speed, blow drying it until it was completely dry. I rummaged in my bag for some decent clothes. The best I could manage with the clothes Mom had packed were a pair of denim shorts, a long floaty blue/green top and brown ballet flats.

I raced down the stairs at 8.54am and out the front door.

"Whoa, wait up Renesmee!" Alice called as I shot past her. She caught my wrist, causing me to stop. She looked me up and down. "You look good, considering Bella packed your clothes."

"I know." I said, pulling a face.

"Aren't you going to be cold, though?" Alice asked, looking at my bare legs and arms, "You get cold, right?"

"Supposedly." I said, "Arietta always does, but I'm usually warm. This is pretty much what I always where."

Alice gave me a doubtful look, but then shrugged. "I'm driving you in."

"You don't have to!" I said

"It's your first day, what kind of aunt would I be if I didn't?" Alice asked. I gave in, deciding it wasn't worth arguing over.

"Come on then, I'd better not be late on my first day." I said. Alice squealed in delight and tugged me towards her yellow Porsche. With her vampire driving, we made it to school in a fraction of the time it should have taken, and arrived before the bell had gone.

"I can't really come in with you." Alice said glumly, "The teachers might recognise me and want to know why I haven't aged since I left school eighteen years ago."

"It's fine." I reassured her, "Thanks for driving me in."

"You're welcome!" Alice said with a smile, "Just got to reception and tell them you're Poppy Moore."

It was a miracle that Alice had remembered to register me as Poppy Moore, the name I had told her was my fake identity, and not Renesmee Cullen. I smiled at Alice in thanks, and got out of the car.

"Renesmee, wait!" Alice said, and I turned back to look at her. She gave me a small tissue-paper wrapped package. "Good luck."

"Thanks." I said, and waved goodbye before running into school. I went to the reception desk, where a blonde woman was sorting through piles of documents.

"Can I help you?" She asked when she looked up and saw me. She didn't seem very friendly.

"I'm Poppy Moore." I said

"Ahh, yes. Hang on." The woman said, and she searched her cluttered desk. She picked up a brown folder, "Here is your schedule and your school map."

"Thanks." I said, taking them from her. I studied the schedule. Homeroom was in building 3, so I headed that way, using the map to guide me. I had always been good at finding my way around places. In every town we'd lived in, it had taken me less than a few weeks to know every road, every building, and every corner. I always found the secret hiding places, like my cliff back in Santa Rosa. I had no trouble finding my first class, and walked in only a couple of minutes after the tardy bell. I was excused, seeing as I was new, but then I faced a knew challenge.

"So, Poppy, tell the class a little about yourself." The teacher - Miss Lenox - said, smiling at me. Oh, shit.

"Uh..." I looked out at the sea of faces in front of me. _Why_ hadn't I thought harder about my back story? Okay, Renesmee, time to improvise. "Well, I'm Poppy Moore. I'm 17, and I've lived in Florida all my life. I came here to live with my Aunt and Uncle, to become independent or whatever. My parents sent me here. They think I need to learn to not rely on them my whole life."

The lie came out easily. The details about independence had come out of no where, but they seemed to work in convincing my new classmates of my story. Some of them were whispering to each other, mostly about me. My half-vampire hearing allowed me to hear some of what they were saying.

"Okay, Poppy, why don't you go and sit over there, next to Rachel?" Miss Lenox said, pointing towards a girl a few rows back. She was pretty, with shoulder-length blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She smiled at me when I sat down.

"Hey," She said

"Hi." I said back

"I think it's totally cool that you don't live with your parents!" She said, "I would so love to get away from mine and live with _my_ aunt and uncle. Of course, they live in Forks as well, so it would be a little pointless. How are you settling in?"

"It's...different." I said

"I'll say!" Rachel said, "Coming from the Florida, the sunshine state, to Washington, the evergreen state and possibly the rainiest place ever."

I smiled. Moving from sunny California to Forks wasn't much different from moving from Florida, I guess. It still felt weird lying about it. "Yeah. It's okay though. Change is good."

"I-" Rachel began, but Miss Lenox cut her off.

"There'll be plenty of time to get to know our new student _out_ of class time, Rachel." She said

"Sorry." Rachel said sheepishly, grinning at me before getting out her workbook to take notes.

I had expected school to drag on, but it flew past and it was the end of the day before I knew it. Alice was waiting for me in the parking lot, which was a relief as I hadn't even thought about how I was getting home. Jasper was at home when we got back, reading the newspaper. He looked up and greeted me and Alice with a smile.

"How was your first day?" He asked me

"It was okay." I said with a shrug, "Poppy Moore is kinda boring."

"I'm pretty sure you'll find it's _Forks_ that's boring, not you." He told me with a laugh

"Hmm." I said

"Are you hungry?" Alice said, bouncing around the kitchen, "What do you want to eat?"

"Do you have any Pop Tarts?" I asked. I'd been craving them all day.

"Sure!" Alice said, "I know I put them...somewhere..."

She was rummaging through cupboards now, sending things flying everywhere - all of which Jasper caught with no problem. "You put them on the top shelf of the end cupboard."

"Oh!" Alice said, clapping her hands together, "That's right!"

She darted to the cupboard and produced boxes and boxes of Pop Tarts. "Whoa, Alice, how many did you buy?"

She shrugged, "Bella used to love them, so I figured you might too. What flavour do you want? We have cherry, chocolate, oreo, birthday cake, strawberry, fudge cream-"

I stopped her before she could list every flavour of the Pop Tarts in front of me, "Cherry's good." I grabbed the box and made my way over to the toaster, "Hey, why do you guys have a cooker and toaster and stuff if you don't eat?"

Alice shrugged, "We went to the furniture store and they matched the theme of the kitchen nicely."

Jasper rolled his eyes, "She bought the place out."

I laughed, pushing down the toaster button and grabbing a plate whilst I waited for them to cook. "How long have you guys lived here?"

"About eighteen years." Alice said, "We'd all finished school, and when Bella and Edward left, we decided that we shouldn't all stay in the house anymore. People might get suspicious of us still living with our parents! So, Esme and Carlisle still live up in the house, me and Jazz moved down here, and Emmett and Rosalie moved out to Chehalis."

"Don't people recognise you from when you went to school?" I asked, "Don't they realise you haven't aged?"

"We keep a pretty low profile." Jasper said, "And since Bella and Edward left, no one seems to notice us anymore. It's like they've forgotten everything."

I tilted my head, "Forgotten? Forgotten how?"

"I don't know. No one ever talks about Bella, it's like she never existed." Jasper said, "I guess she drifted apart from most of her friends as she became more involved with Edward, and then when she moved away...people forgot about her."

"That's awful!" I said

"That's convenient." Jasper corrected, "People don't notice us, they don't see what we really are."

I considered. It was _weird_, that's what it was. Hadn't Mom had any friends at school? Had she really been so involved with Dad that he monopolized her time so much that she had no other friends. Come to think of it, I don't think I'd ever heard Mom talk about anyone from her teen years besides the Cullens or her parents. Strange.

I didn't let it bother me, though. I took my Pop Tarts out of the toaster and made my way upstairs.

~o.O.o~

"I miss you, Brookey." I said, lounging back on my bed and tracing the pattern on the bedspread as I talked into the phone.

"Babe!" Brooke drawled into the phone, "You know I miss you too!"

"I had my first day at school today." I told her, "It was weird not sitting next to you in every lesson."

"It's weird not having you sitting next to me too." Brooke said, "Maisie Evans tried to sit next to me in homeroom."

"Give her a chance Brooke, she's not all that bad." I said

"She _smells_." Brooke said. It sounded so childish that I had to laugh, but I also had to admit that it was true. My advanced sense of smell had made her scent all the more off-putting. She didn't have a great sense of personal hygiene, but it wasn't really her fault. "So, what's your school like? Tell me all!"

"It's alright." I said, "Pretty average really."

"You're not getting away with that!" Brooke said, "Have you made any friends? Are your teachers awful? Are there any cute boys?"

"Yes, no, and I hadn't really noticed." I said

"Renesmee Cullen!" Brooke squealed, "After all my years of teaching..." I rolled my eyes as she went into a rant about boy-spotting and the many methods she'd taught me over the years. She ended her speech with, "But I guess it doesn't matter so much anyway, seeing as you're taken!"

"What?" I asked

"Josh?" Brooke asked, "Sweetie, you haven't forgotten about him already have you? That Florida sun is going to your head."

"Florida isn't much sunnier than California." I told her, but I knew I was avoiding the point. "But actually, Josh and I-"

I broke off when I sensed someone behind me. I looked over to see Jasper in the doorway. "Hey Jasper."

"Alice is having a fit, she wants to discuss something about your clothes." He told me with an eye roll

"Can it wait?" I asked, then I could hear Alice muttering downstairs, "Never mind, it's Alice. Stupid question."

Jasper grinned at me.

"Renesmee? Do you want to tell me who this _Jasper_ is?" Brooke asked, "I thought you said you hadn't noticed any boys?"

I couldn't help laughing, and Jasper looked a little awkward, obviously hearing the conversation through the phone due to his vampire hearing. "He's my uncle, Brooke."

"Ahh, right." Brooke said

"I've gotta go Brookey, I'll call you tomorrow, yeah?" I said

"Sure, I've gotta go meet the guys anyway." Brooke said

"Who are you meeting?" I asked, suddenly curious

"Just Santana and Madison and their latest boyfriends." Brooke said, and I could hear the eye roll.

"Don't let them get to you Brookey, you know you're over Michael and he's not worth thinking about anymore." I told her, "But hey, if Santana and Madison want to jump into bed with the first guy they see on the street, that's their problem. At least you have standards."

"Hmm." Was all Brooke said, "I wish I didn't sometimes. I mean, Renesmee, I'm _still a virgin_. I mean, you and Josh-"

"Brooke!" I cut her off before she could reveal every detail of my sex life in front of Jasper, who was already looking awkward as Brooke had started talking about hers. "I really have to go! Tell me all about it tomorrow, okay?"

"'kay." Brooke said, "See ya."

"Bye Brooke." I said and I rang off. I turned to Jasper and pulled a face, "Sorry about that. Brooke gets a little...carried away."

"Don't worry." Jasper said, "I interrupted a private call."

I shook my head. "Naah, I don't mind."

"Your conversation was so...human." Jasper commented, and I grinned.

"75% of the conversation _was_ human." I reminded him, "It's just my little vampire half that tips the scales a little."

"So...Brooke, she's your friend from California?" Jasper asked. I nodded, "Does she know what...you are?"

"No, no!" I said

"So, she doesn't know why you left?" Jasper asked

"She thinks I had a family emergency and had to go live in Florida with my uncle." I told him. Jasper nodded.

"Renesmee, I'm waiting!" Alice called up the stairs.

"You'd better go before she drags you down there herself." Jasper told me. I gave him a quizzical look but he just held back a smile. I went downstairs to find Alice, surrounded by bags and bags of shopping.

"Alice!" I cried

"Do you think it's enough?" She asked

"To clothe an army?" I asked, "Maybe."

"To fill your wardrobe, silly." Alice said. I stared at her for a moment.

"You bought all this...for me?" I asked

"Of course!" Alice said, "You couldn't live on just the clothes Bella packed for you!"

"Alice, I can't accept all this!" I said, but even as I said the words I felt myself drawn towards the glossy new bags. I stroked the side of one of them, and Alice grinned.

"You can't resist for long." She said, "You really are different from Bella. Go on, take a look."

I peeked into the bags, pulling various things out; tops, jeans, shorts, jackets, pants, cardigans, shoes, bags, belts, accessories, jewellery...it was all beautiful and insanely expensive stuff. There was no point arguing about my receiving the gift - Alice probably hadn't even dented her bank balance with this - so I just threw my arms around her. "You're the best Alice!"

Alice looked a little startled, "That's the best reaction I've ever had to a present!"

"You don't receive enough credit Alice, you really are brilliant." I told her and she beamed widely at me.

"You know, I like you Renesmee." Alice said. I laughed.

"I'll help you take these upstairs and then help you pick an outfit for tonight." Alice said

"What's tonight?" I asked

"Well, we never properly celebrated our little family reunion, so me you Rosalie and Esme are going for a girls night out, how does that sound?" Alice asked

"Pretty good, actually." I said. It would be good to get to know Rosalie a little bit more, seeing as I'd left Arietta in her care, and Esme was the kind of woman that anyone would love spending time with.

"Come on then, I'll do your hair." Alice said excitedly, "It's been _years_ since I've had a Barbie doll to play with!"

An hour later, I was dressed in leggings, brown high top boots, and a cream peplum top. Alice had straightened my hair so it hung even longer than usual, and she'd even gone as far as doing my make-up for me. I'd willingly let her, partly as a thank you for everything she was doing for me and because it would be pointless to refuse anyway, and partly because I _liked_ doing girly stuff like this. Mom had never been one to pretty me up with make-up or do my hair for me. The closest I got to that was when me and Brooke had clumsily learnt by doing each others hair and make-up.

"You're ready." Alice finally decided, "Come on!" She pulled me downstairs and towards the front door, yelling a casual, "Bye, Jazz."

"Hey," Jasper, said appearing at her side instantly, "You trying to sneak off without saying a proper goodbye?"

"Never." Alice said innocently, standing on her tip toes so she could reach up to kiss him lightly on the lips.

"You look nice Renesmee." Jasper told me

"Thanks, it's all Alice's doing." I said. And then Alice was rushing me out of the door and into the Porsche, and we began the drive. I suddenly realised I had no idea where we were going or what exactly our 'girls night out' entailed.

We drove for what must have been miles, but didn't feel like that far due to Alice's vampire driving, and came to a place I didn't recognize. It looked like a club. I gave Alice a wary look. "I'm only seventeen Alice."

"And I'm only nineteen." Alice said

"But I'm _really_ only seventeen." I said. Alice just shrugged.

"It's fine, we'll get in." She said. And we did. Esme and Rosalie were already sat in a little booth and Alice waved at them before taking me over to the bar.

"You don't drink, do you?" I asked

Alice shrugged, "You know we _can_ eat and drink, we just choose not to because of the revolting taste...well, most of this stuff is revolting to humans anyway. So yeah, occasionally, we drink."

I accepted this, and Alice ordered two vodka cranberries, despite my weak protests that I was five years underage. Alice didn't care, and by the time we'd taken the drinks back to the booth I didn't care either. Why should I care? Why _shouldn't _I have something to drink? I was going to live for hundreds of years, a little drink wouldn't hurt, would it?

And it was _nice_. Of course, I had the advantage over the others of actually being able to tolerate human food, but still. It mostly tasted like cranberries. I could drink a lot of these. But I wouldn't, because I was a _responsible adult_.

Alice dragged us all out onto the dance floor whenever her favourite songs came on, and in between we had drinks, and we talked. It was a proper girls night out. The kind of thing I wish I could have done with Mom. Someday, when all of this is over. When Arietta turns twenty-one, me her and Mom will go out on the town. Of course, it will take a bit on convincing to get her into a nice outfit, but I'm sure me and Ari could manage it.

Rosalie told me that Arietta was settling in fine, and I promised to come and visit early the next day. I had, quite pointlessly, had my first day at school on a Friday, so it was Saturday tomorrow, leaving me the whole day to spend time with her. I arranged to come over before lunch. Mom had described Rosalie as 'scary' in her letter, but I couldn't see that side of her at all! She was _great_!

It was past midnight when we all decided to go home. Rosalie and Esme headed off back to their husbands, and Alice and I climbed into the Porsche. I almost scolded Alice for drink driving, but I knew that nothing would make a vampire's driving anything but perfect.

We got home and I fell asleep as soon as I led down on the bed.

When I woke up, a harsh light was coming in through the window. I groaned and rolled over. I felt like I had twenty tiny daggers stabbing into my brain. How much had they let me drink last night? I tried to count but lost track. What the hell, Alice? She was supposed to be the responsible one-hundred-and-something year old adult who should be looking after me.

"Oh good, Renesmee's awake!" Came a shrill voice from downstairs, and Alice bounced into my room, bubbly as ever. Her voice was high pitched and _too happy_. The tiny daggers doubled in numbers as she spoke-slash-sang the greeting. "Good morning!"

"Get out." I growled, covering my face with the pillow.

"Hey, what's up?" Alice asked. I could sense the hurt in her voice. I groaned again, but the sound was incredibly loud. I sensed Jasper appear in the doorway.

"What the heck is wrong with her?" He asked. He could probably feel all my pain and irritation right now.

"I don't know, she-" I tuned out. Alice's voice was too high and bubbly. Why did she not feel like this? Did the alcohol not affect her as much as it did me? It was probably some vampire thing. Figures, Alice wouldn't know what the hell I was feeling right now.

"It's called a hangover." I growled, "Just exactly how much did you let me drink last night?"

I pulled the pillow away from my face to glare at Alice. She actually flinched back, "Oops. I guess I figured it would affect you the same as us...but maybe you're affected like a human would be."

"_Maybe_." I said, sarcastically

"I'm really sorry Renesmee." Alice said, biting her lip. I sighed.

"Don't be. I'm sorry. I'm not being very pleasant, am I?" I asked, "I don't suppose you have any aspirin?"

"Umm...I don't think so." Alice said worriedly, "Are you okay, Renesmee?"

"Yeah. I'll go to the store and get some, I guess." I said

"On the way to Emmett and Rose's?" Alice asked. I stared at her.

"Hu?" I asked

"You're going over there, aren't you?" Alice asked. I looked at the time. It was 11 o'clock already! I'd said I'd be there before lunch, and it took three hours to get there, unless I counted this as an emergency where I could justify breaking every speed limit I came across.

"Shit." I said, shooting out of bed and forgetting the pain in my head. I was grabbing clothes and was dressed and out of the door in a few minutes. I did my make up in the car whilst waiting at traffic lights, and then I called Rosalie. Alice had programmed all of the Cullen's numbers into my cell.

"Hey Renesmee, are you coming over soon?" Rosalie answered

"I'm running a little late." I grumbled, "I'll be there in a few hours."

"Oh, sure." Rosalie said, "Where are you?"

"I'm on my way now, but I've gotta stop at the drug store first." I said

"What's up?" Rosalie asked

"I don't remember how much I drank last night...but it was a lot." I said, "Turns out I'm more human than vampire in the areas of hangovers."

"Ouch." Rosalie sympathized, "We'll see you here in a bit then."

"Alright, see ya Rosalie." I said. I hung up, and pulled in at the drug store. I swallowed the aspirin dry and they didn't take long to start kicking in. I arrived at Emmett and Rosalie's house a few hours later to find Arietta waiting in the front yard. She jumped up when she saw me and squealed, hardly waiting for me to get out of the car before she launched herself at me, throwing her arms around me.

"I've missed you so much Renesmee!" She cried

"I missed you too, Ari." I said. I looked around to make sure it was safe to use real names, but there was no one watching us. "Come on, let's go inside." Arietta took my hand and pulled me inside the house. "So, tell me all about what it's like living with Rosalie and Emmett."

"It's so fun!" Arietta said, "I miss you every day, but Auntie Rosalie and Uncle Emmett are great! Uncle Emmett especially, he always makes me laugh!"

"That's good." I said, "What's your bedroom like?"

"It's all green!" Arietta said, jumping with joy.

"Your favourite colour, look how that worked out." I said

"I know, I know!" Arietta said, "And it's got a massive window with a little seat in it so I can sit and look out the window, and the bed is huge, and Auntie Rosalie bought me all these stuffed animals and they take over the whole bed!"

"Sounds great, Ari." I said, "Have you started school yet?"

"I start on Monday." Arietta said, shaking her head, "I can't wait!"

I laughed, "And there you were a few days ago, _begging_ for me to stay with you. Bet your glad I'm out of your way now, aren't you?"

"No! No Renesmee, I still wish you could be here too!" Arietta said, "What's it like with Auntie Alice and Uncle Jasper? Are they nice? Do you have a nice room? What have you been doing? What's school like?"

She fired questions at me and I answered them as best I could in the little time she allowed me to speak in between questions. Finally, at one question, she stopped. "How long do you think we'll be here?"

"I don't know Ari," I said, "Not very long. Mom and Dad will come back soon."

I didn't believe even for a second that this was true. I didn't think they'd be coming back for a while, not until it was completely safe. If they came back at all, that is...But I couldn't tell Arietta any of that. I was immensely glad that she had inherited Mom's gift of a mental block, and not Dad's gift of reading minds. _That_ would have been catastrophic.

"Are you sure?" She asked. I nodded. "Show me them."

I smiled, and placed my hand on her cheek, projecting memories of our parents spending time with us, when we were all together and happy. "It will be that way again, someday. Soon. I promise."

Arietta was beaming at me, "I love it when you project."

"I'll do it more often then." I teased, poking her in the ribs, then the arm, then the cheek, her side, anywhere I could reach - each time projecting a different image as she giggled and batted me away.

"Hi Renesmee." Rosalie greeted and I stopped attacking Arietta to face her.

"Hey." I said

"How's the hangover?" Rosalie asked

"Hangover?" Arietta asked chirpily, "Renesmee, you've been drinking? I'm _telling_!"

"Telling who?" I asked sticking my tongue out at her before turning back to Rosalie, "The aspirin helped. I think I nearly killed Jasper this morning with my bad mood, though."

Rosalie laughed, "He's dealt with worse."

"It must be awful at times." I said, "Dealing with other people's emotions." Arietta looked confused, so I explained, "It's his gift."

"Like projecting?" Arietta asked

"Right." I said. Now it was Rosalie's turn to look confused. Instead of explaining verbally, I touched her arm and projected an image - a random scene from last nights girls night out. "Arietta has a mental block like Mom."

"Bella has a...metal block? What is that?" Rosalie asked, and I remembered that the Cullens hadn't even met vampire-Mom.

"It's the reason Dad can't read her mind." I explained, "It blocks certain vampire powers. Not all of them, only the ones that deal with the mind, like illusions or mind reading."

"So...projecting?" Rosalie asked

"I can show any memory or image through touch." I explained, "It's how I used to communicate before I could even talk."

"That's fascinating." Rosalie said, "You know, I wish I could have been there to see you grow up, Renesmee. And Arietta too. I've always wanted kids, but obviously that's never going to happen now." I thought about what Mom and Dad had told me, in that rushed explanation before me and Arietta left. 'Normal vampire's don't have children. They can't'. Rosalie wanted children, but she would never be able to have them. My parents had found a way, intentionally or not, to break that rule, but it was too late for Rosalie. I couldn't imagine not being able to have kids. I'd always pictured myself with kids one day, and for me, it would be possible. But Rosalie...oh, poor Rosalie. "I don't understand why they left. They could have come back, we would have all looked after you."

Rosalie looked as if she were going to start crying any minute - of course I knew that wasn't possible. I sighed, "I think they thought it would be safer. They were hiding us from the Volturi, but they would have easily found us if we'd lived with you. For the record though, I wish you all could have been there too."

We made eye contact and smiled, a bond forming between us. Then Emmett crashed into the room with a wide grin on his face and broke the sweet moment, "Hey Renesmee, when did you get here?"

"Hey Emmett." I said

"I heard you got pissed last night." Emmett said

"Language." Rosalie scolded, her eyes flicking to Arietta. She really was a proper mother figure when she wanted to be. Emmett spoke the exact same sentence in Portuguese, and Rosalie smacked him on the shoulder.

"So _spill_, what happened?" Emmett asked, "Give me all the dirt."

"We went out, had drinks, and I woke up with a splitting headache." I said, "That's about it."

"Oh." Emmett said, sounding bored, "What kind of girls night out was _that_?"

I rolled my eyes as Emmett winked at me, but it was hard not to love my new found Uncle, even though I'd hardly spent ten minutes with him.

"Renesmee, come see my room!" Arietta said, tugging on my arm. I spent the rest of the day being dragged around by my little sister, showing me all her new toys, all the rooms of the house, and all the drawings she'd done since I'd left her a few days earlier. I left at 6 o'clock and didn't get back to Alice and Jasper's until after dark.

It was weird leaving Arietta again, and going back to my attic room. Ever since Arietta was born, we'd been like best friends, as well as sisters. In fact, right from the moment she was born, we were more than just sisters. And now we'd been torn apart. It felt so wrong, but I knew I would do anything to keep her safe, even if that meant going against my urge to stay by her side until all danger passed. I'd always been her protector, and I always would be...

* * *

**Okay, the next chapter is going to be a flashback to when they were younger, still told from Renesmee's point of view. It might be a little shorter than the other chapters, but I'll try to get it up quicker to make up for it :) And also, the storyline's going to pick up soon, as I know not much is really happening at the moment... :)**

**So, what did you think of the chapter? Pleeeeease review! Thanks to everyone who's reviewed, I really appreciate it :)**

**Next chapter really soon! :)**


	4. The Protector

**Hearts of Ice**

**Chapter Four: The protector**

_*Flashback*_

Mom was screaming from the next room. She sounded like she was in so much pain, but Dad had told me not to worry about it. He said she'd gone through the same thing when she'd had me, and she'd been fine. The fact that I had caused this much pain to my own mother was appalling, I thought. I didn't like the screaming, so I covered my ears and waited for it to stop. When it finally ceased, I could hear another sound. Crying; a baby!

I ran into the room where my parents were. Tucked into Mom's arms was a little pink-faced baby. I gasped in delight and ran forward to meet my new sibling. Suddenly, my Mom's head fell back onto the sofa, her eyes closed.

"Bella?" Dad cried, "Bella?!" I was pushed out of the way as I tried to see what was happening. "Oh God Bella!" A baby appeared in my arms, "Take her upstairs, and don't come down until I tell you it's okay."

"Daddy, what's-" I began

"Just do it Renesmee!" He snapped. I clutched the baby to my chest and ran out of the room, trying to hold back tears. I ran halfway up the stairs and then stopped, watching my parents through the railings. Dad was too busy with Mom to notice that I hadn't obeyed him. He was leaning over her, and it took me a minute to realise what he was doing. He was biting her. He was turning her into a vampire.

She shrieked in pain, much worse than before. She was shaking on the table, writhing in pain. Tears streamed down my cheeks and I let out a whimpering sound. Dad turned around to face me.

"Go upstairs Renesmee, I told you!" He yelled, his voice echoing around the house. I bolted upstairs, up into the attic where I always hid from danger, and locked the door behind me. I could still hear the screaming from downstairs, but it was muffled.

I finally looked down at the baby lying peacefully in my arms. Her face was so small and perfect, like a little china doll. Her skin was paler than Mom's human skin tone, but not as pale as Dad's vampire skin. It was a mix of both. It matched perfectly to the arms that held her now; my arms. She had little pink lips that moved softly as she breathed, and tiny little blonde eyelashes on her closed eyes. A few wisps of blonde hair covered her head, poking out from the white blanket she was wrapped in. She opened her eyes and looked right up at me, staring straight into my own eyes; bright chocolate brown to bright chocolate brown. She was just like me. She was my sister.

I gently kissed her forehead. "Hello, little sister." I whispered. She gurgled in response, making me giggle. Another scream came from downstairs, and the baby's eyes widened, but she didn't cry.

"Don't worry. You're safe here with me." I told her softly, "I'll protect you I promise."

A smile spread across her tiny face, as if she could understand what I was saying. I rocked her gently in my arms, where she seemed to fit so perfectly, like she was made to be held by me this way. I unwrapped some of her white blanket slightly, and a tiny starfish hand popped out, reaching up towards me. I touched it gently, tickling it and making the baby giggle again.

I looked around the attic. It was where I came to hide from the monsters, and to be by myself when I was upset. It was full of toys, clothes, and blankets, all belonging to me. Sometimes I would have to hide from the monsters overnight. I grabbed a different blanket - a warmer, fluffier one - and wrapped it around my beautiful baby sister.

The screaming downstairs had been replaced with odd whimpering sounds, and the baby had fallen asleep. I headed over to the bed. This wasn't where I usually slept, downstairs in my bedroom, but I had slept here lots of times before, when the monsters came at night time. I got into bed, and hugged the baby tightly to my chest, making sure she would be safe here whilst we both slept. I knew she would be. I would never let anything happen to my baby sister.

I woke up to silence the next morning. I expected the baby to be asleep, but she was lying awake in my arms, staring at me silently with her big bright eyes. I smiled as I saw her angelic little face. "Good morning, little sister."

Her reply was a gurgling noise. That was enough to make my smile grow. I got out of bed, carrying the baby with me, and went to sit down on the couch instead. I couldn't hear anything from downstairs, but Dad had said not to come down until he told me I could, so I stayed upstairs with the baby all day. And I didn't mind one bit.

I showed her my favourite toys and we played with them together, and I read her all my favourite story books, and I tickled her and cooed over her and tried to make her laugh. It was that evening - a whole 24 hours after her birth - that I decided that my baby sister needed a name. I didn't know what my parents wanted her to be called, and I didn't know how they would feel about me naming her myself, but I'd been calling her 'little sister' for the past 24 hours and I'd had enough. It took me all evening to come up with a name, and we were led down in bed starting to drift off to sleep when I finally came up with one. It was the main character from the first story book I'd read to her, earlier that day. I looked down at her pretty face and I knew it fit perfectly.

"Arietta." I whispered. Her eyes opened and she smiled a wide, toothless smile at me. I took this as a yes.

Satisfied with the name, we both fell asleep.

Arietta cried the next day, and I knew why almost instantly. The growling of my own stomach told me that she must be starving. She'd never even eaten before! The only food in the attic was biscuits and sweets, and I'd been told not to come downstairs. But I could hear there was no one down there, and I couldn't bear to see Arietta's beautiful face all scrunched up and crying.

"Shh," I soothed, taking her up in my arms, "We'll go find food."

I opened the door to the attic silently and waited a second, making sure there was definitely no one downstairs. We were clear. I went downstairs, not finding any trace of what had happened two days ago. Mom and Dad were no where to be seen. I went into the kitchen and, balancing the baby in one arm, opened the fridge. The only non-solid food I could see was milk, but it was cows milk and even at eight years old I knew I mustn't give this to a baby. But what _was_ I supposed to give her?

I looked around, and my stomach growled again. I wasn't hungry for human food, I was thirsty. I looked down at Arietta in wonder. Mom had told me that I had drank animal blood right from birth. In fact, it had been my first ever meal. I dived into the second fridge, the one where Dad kept spare animal blood in case I was too tired to go out hunting. It was fully stocked, and I said a silent prayer to all the gods I could think of. I found a bottle - one that Mom had bought a few weeks ago after delaying baby shopping for as long as possible - and got a cup for me, and poured the blood into both. I held the bottle up to Arietta's lips and she drank thirstily, quickly making her way through the meal. I gave her another bottle, and she drank most of that one before she got fed up, so I drank my own glass and took her back upstairs to the attic.

"Do you feel better now, little sister?" I asked. 'Little sister' had become somewhat of a nickname for her now. Arietta giggled and I wiped a trace of blood from her lips. "One day I'll take you hunting with me. You'll love it. We'll take down whole mountain lions and wolves and bears! Maybe Mom and Dad could come with us." Mom would be a vampire, I remembered, so she would come hunting too. We'd go out as a family! I looked down at Arietta. She'd hardly even met her own parents. Did she remember their faces? Would she recognise them when they came back?

Yes, she would. I would make sure of it. I touched her cheek gently and projected images of Mom and Dad - taking me to the park, smiling and joking together, talking about 'the new baby' whilst Mom was still pregnant, shopping, dancing, hugging, smiling...every memory I had of them, I projected onto my sister. She looked up at me in awe and a huge smile spread across her face.

"That's your Mommy and Daddy." I told her gently, "They'll be back really soon, and they're gunna be so happy to see you!"

I didn't know exactly how soon they _would _be back, but I didn't mind. I was happy here with Arietta, and I would look after her until my parents came back. I didn't know where they were or what they were doing, but I knew it must be important. I knew they always put my safety first, and I knew that they would now put Arietta's safety first too, so I could count on them to come back before I even needed them to.

It was another two days until they returned. That was a total of five days I had looked after Arietta, staying in the attic and making trips downstairs only to get food and blood. I heard them come in and my first instinct was to run to them, hug them and show them Arietta. But I remembered what Dad had said, and he hadn't told me it was okay to come out yet. So I waited another half hour, until I heard Dad coming upstairs. He tried opening the door to the attic, but it was locked.

"Renesmee?" He called. I picked up Arietta from where she'd been laying on the bed, and made my way over to the door, unlocking it and throwing it open to see my Dad's smiling face.

"Daddy!" I said, hugging him as best I could with the baby in my arms.

"I'm so sorry we left you, Renesmee." He said, "But Mom needed to...well, she wasn't really in control. She couldn't stay here in the house. I knew you'd be okay, you're a big girl."

I smiled widely. "Is Mommy okay now?"

"Yes." Dad said, "But you still need to be a little careful around her." I frowned. She wasn't safe around me? "She wants to see the baby."

I shook my head. If she wasn't safe for _me_, how could I let her near Arietta? She couldn't defend herself! "Let me see her first. To make sure she's okay."

"Renesmee-" Dad began

"If she's okay around my blood, then she'll be okay with the baby!" I argued, "We should test her first."

Dad seemed to realise I was right, "Okay, but I'm going to be there anyway in case. You don't need to worry."

I shook my head again, "You need to stay outside the room with the baby until I say she's passed the test. Promise, Daddy."

My face must have been so serious, that Dad agreed. Or maybe he just knew that I had a point. Of course, my mother as a newborn would be able to win in a fight against half-vampire me, but I would be able to defend myself long enough for Dad to run in and stop her. Not that I thought Mom would...well.

"I'll be right outside, okay?" Dad said when we got downstairs. I nodded, and pushed the door to the living room.

Mom was standing facing me and I had to take a few moments to take her in. She was stunning. I mean, she'd always been beautiful, but now...with added vampire dazzling qualities...she took my breath away. She was watching me, her eyes a slightly fading red colour.

"Mom." I gasped, "You're beautiful."

"Renesmee!" Mom said, a smile breaking across her face. She didn't seem to be having trouble controlling herself. Of course, Dad had always told me that I had enough vampire in my scent to stop my blood from being attractive to vampires, but that didn't change the fact that my scent was half human and that I _did_ have a beating heart pushing blood through my veins.

"How are you feeling?" I asked

"Amazing." Mom said, "Everything is so bright and clear."

I laughed, "Welcome to vampirism, Mama."

"Can I see her? The baby?" Mom asked. I watched her for a moment.

"Yeah, I guess." I said. She seemed under control, and Dad would be there just in case. And I was _not_ going to let anything happen to Arietta. She would be completely safe. I skipped out of the room and took the baby out of Dad's arms, taking her back into the living room to where Mom was waiting. "I hope you don't mind...I kind of named her. I called her Arietta."

I bit my lip, expecting lectures and yelling for naming _their_ daughter, but Mom beamed at me. "That's beautiful, Renesmee! I love it!"

I looked at Dad, but he was smiling too. "It's perfect."

"You're not mad?" I asked

"Of course not." Mom said, "You spent the first five days of her life with her, you know her better than we do. Who better to name her?"

I smiled, "She's named after the girl from 'Arietta and the friendly wolf' - it's the first story I ever read to her. It's my favourite."

"I'm proud of you Renesmee." Mom said, "You looked after her and acted like a grown up."

My smile grew insanely wide. "Do you want to hold her?"

Mom looked at Dad, but he just nodded at her. "You can do it."

"Okay." Mom said. I lifted Arietta up gently and placed her in Mom's arms. Arietta looked up at Mom and recognition flashed into her eyes, and she reached a starfish hand up towards Mom's face. Mom gasped in delight and gazed down into Arietta's face, "She's so perfect. She's beautiful."

"She's thirsty." I commented as she started to whimper. I went to the fridge and Mom and Dad watched me in amazement as I went about making her a bottle of blood. "What?" I asked, "It's all I had to give her. And man, does she drink _a lot_."

_*Five years later*_

I was just drifting off to sleep when a tiny person slipped into bed next to me. I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her to me. She was freezing, but soon warmed up under the covers of my big double bed.

"What's up, Ari?" I whispered

"I couldn't sleep." Arietta mumbled, her voice muffled by the thumb stuck into her mouth.

"Why? Did you have a nightmare?" I asked. Arietta nodded. She always came into my bed when she couldn't sleep, or when she had a bad dream. I think subconsciously, she still remembered those first five days of her life, hugged to my chest as we slept. In the last five years, she'd slept in my bed nearly as much as in her own bed. "What happened?"

"There was a war and everyone was shooting people and I was stuck in the middle and I couldn't move and it was really scary." Arietta said in a rush. Damn, it was that stupid movie from earlier. Mom and Dad had been watching some war film rated PG13 and - what with me being 13 - they had invited me to watch it with them. But where I went, Arietta went, and it wasn't the most suitable film for a five year old. I'd taken her out to play another game after I realised just how bad it was, but obviously it had stuck with her.

"Shall we chase the bad dream away?" I asked. Arietta nodded. I sung softly and quietly, though I knew my parents were downstairs and could probably hear us. "Sun goes down, and we are here together. Fireflies glow like a thousand charms. Stay with me, and you can dream forever, right here in my arms tonight. It's magic when you are here beside me. Close your eyes and let me hold you tight. Everything that I could ever need is right here in my arms tonight. Sounds of day fade away, stars begin to climb. Melodies fill the breeze, sweeter all the time. My love is always with you, whether near or far. How sweet to hold you right here in my arms tonight."

Arietta had fallen asleep, and I kept my arms around her as I let myself fall asleep too.

When I woke up, Arietta was staring into my face. Whenever she slept in my bed, she would wait for me to wake up before she got up herself.

"Good morning, little sister." I said sleepily

"Good morning, big sister." Arietta replied chirpily. She hopped out of bed, "Mommy's made pancakes."

"I'll be right down." I said. I checked the time. 5.30 in the morning...I rolled over in bed with a groan as Arietta skipped downstairs to breakfast. 5.30...in...the...morning. My family was insane. This was not the time for breakfast! It was alright for Mom and Dad, who didn't sleep and so had no concept of night time (a.k.a sleeping time) and day (a.k.a when the sun was actually _in_ the sky).

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew why Arietta was so excited today. Right, the hunting trip! Arietta had just turned five, and Mom and Dad had agreed to let her come hunting for the first time. For the last five years, she'd been living off refrigerated blood that we brought home from hunting, but today she was coming with us. For the first time, she was going to have to kill an animal and drink it's blood there and then. She was immensely excited...

_*4 years later* _**(A/N this is the morning of the very start of the story...)**

"Renesmee, get _up_!" Arietta said, tugging at my arm, trying to pull me out of bed.

"Arietta..." I moaned, rolling away from her

"I want to go hunting!" She said

"Later." I told her

"Now!" She moaned, "Mom and Dad won't let me go alone, _please_ get up Renesmee!"

I rolled over to face her, ready to argue. It was a mistake. One look at those big bright chocolate colours eyes and I couldn't resist giving her what she wanted. "Alright, give me ten minutes."

"Yes!" Arietta cried and ran downstairs to tell Mom and Dad. I changed into denim shorts and a t-shirt, and clipped some of my hair back, out of my face. I barely had time to grab my phone before Arietta was back in my bedroom, pulling me downstairs.

On the way back from our rather successful hunting trip, my cell started ringing. The caller ID flashed a picture of me and Josh a few weeks ago goofing around at a funfair. I smiled and answered the call, "Hey Josh."

"Renesmee, what are you up to today?" He asked

"Uh, family stuff, I think." I said, "Why, what's up?"

"Oh." He said, his voice falling, "I was gunna say we could meet up, but don't worry about it."

"Ah, Josh, I'm sorry." I said, "Tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I guess." Josh said, "So you're not around at all today?"

"Don't think so." I said, "I promised to take Ari out shopping and to see a movie."

"Right. Okay." Josh said, "I'll see you tomorrow then, I suppose."

"Bye." I said. He hung up and I felt incredibly guilty. Arietta was staring at me.

"Did you just turn down a date to go shopping with me?" She asked. I shrugged, "We can do that anytime!"

"I can meet up with Josh anytime." I pointed out

"You made him all upset now." Arietta said, putting on a little pout. I laughed at her. "I don't mind, we'll go out another day."

"Are you sure?" I asked, watching her face. She really didn't seem to mind.

"Of course I'm sure!" She said, "I have the pleasure of spending time with you at home anyway."

Her voice was teasingly sarcastic, and I jumped towards her, tickling her side until she apologized, giggling in a heap on the floor. "Alright, I guess I'll spend the day with Josh then."

I was about to ring him back, when I decided to surprise him instead. I'd get a pizza and bring round some movies, and we could spend the day at his house. I loved doing that, especially when we had the house to ourselves. So, it was decided.

"You're the best Ari." I said, "I'll buy you ice cream at the movies to make up for it, yeah?"

"Deal." Arietta said, grinning, "When are you meeting loverboy?"

"Don't call him loverboy!" I said, holding back a laugh

"Why not? That's what he is!" Arietta said, "You love him...don't you?"

I looked at my nine year old sister's serious face. "Yeah. Yeah, I guess I do."

"Well then," Arietta said, the seriousness leaving her face as she broke into a grin again, "I can call him loverboy."

* * *

**Heyy so, I know not much really happened in this chapter for the storyline, but I wanted to tell this little part of the story of when they were young and how they became so close and everything. The next chapter will be back to present time, and the storyline should start picking up!**

**The song Renesmee sings to Arietta isn't mine, but I don't know where it's from as a friend sent me the lyrics so disclaimer to wherever it's from!**

**Hope you liked the chapter, please review! :) :)**


	5. Rule Breaker

**Hearts of Ice**

**Chapter 5: Rule Breaker**

"Do you want breakfast, Renesmee?" Alice asked on Sunday morning (Although it was nearly afternoon by the time I dragged myself out of bed and got downstairs).

"No thanks Alice." I said, "I actually think I'm gunna go hunting."

"I'll come with you!" Alice said

"Yeah, if you want." I said

"Jasper will come too, won't you Jazz?" Alice asked Jasper, who was sat reading the newspaper. He looked up.

"If you want me to." He said

"Of course we do!" Alice said, laughing, "But first I need to get changed. These shoes will only get ruined." I looked down at her incredibly thin high heels, and I had to agree. She was back in a flash wearing pumps instead, "Let's go!"

Hunting didn't take long, and I came back refreshed. I hadn't hunted since before leaving Santa Rosa, and it felt good to get some blood inside of me. Alice was on cloud nine when we got back, bouncing around and asking me what I wanted to do next.

"Actually, if you don't mind, I was thinking about exploring Forks by myself today." I said

"Of course I don't mind!" Alice said, "Do you know what time you'll be back?"

"I'm not sure." I said, "Late afternoon?"

"Okay, what do you want for dinner?" She asked

"I'll get a take out on my way home." I told her

"Alright! Well, have fun!" Alice said

"Thanks." I said. I ran upstairs and grabbed the keys to the Vanquish and my purse, before leaving the house where Alice was already absorbed in online shopping. I drove around for a while before ditching the car at the side of a road and making my way on foot. I walked right past the outskirts of town, out into the forest. It was peaceful, having no one around.

I came to an opening, and sat down against a large tree. The only sounds were birds chirping. It was quite beautiful really. The bird songs got me thinking about singing. I'd been taught to sing at an early age, sat on top of Dad's piano as he played beautiful music on the keys. I'd always loved singing, and I'd always been told I was good at it. Arietta had never really been interested in it, but she threw all her energy into learning the piano and, with help from Dad, had become an amazing musician. We would quite often do duets; her on piano and me singing.

Oh God, I missed her so much. I missed watching her play sat on Dad's piano stool, stacked with a couple of phonebooks to make it high enough. I missed making up lyrics to the tunes she came up with, and singing in harmony with her playing. I missed her laugh and her smile and her voice.

I began dancing. It was what I always did when I needed cheering up. The smooth beautiful moves calmed me. I twirled and jumped and moved in time with a tune that played in my head - a song that Arietta had created. I danced around the clearing until I was out of breath and then collapsed back down to where I'd been sat under the tree.

"Renesmee, that was beautiful." Alice's voice made me jump. I spun around to see Alice and Jasper standing in the clearing.

"What are you doing?" I snapped, "I said I wanted to be by myself!"

They both looked taken aback by my anger. "We know. We weren't following you, we were just out here and we saw you dancing."

"Right." I said, "And you thought you'd just stop and watch?"

"Well...yeah. I'm sorry Renesmee, we didn't think-" Alice began

"Forget it." I growled, and I started stalking off in the other direction. I felt like my privacy had been ripped away. That dance...it had been private. I didn't like other people watching me dance.

"Renesmee!" Alice called. They were following me, "Please don't be upset! I really am sorry!"

"Renesmee, wait!" Jasper said. I carried on walking quickly, further into the forest.

"You can't go any further, Renesmee." Alice told me, "That's the border. We can't go there."

Exactly.

"Come and stop me then." I snapped and I stalked right across the invisible line that made up the border.

"Renesmee!" Alice called, but they didn't dare follow me Quileute land. I broke into a run, wanting to get away from them. I didn't see what was wrong with crossing the border. What were Alice and Jasper so afraid of? So these people saw vampires as enemies, so what? Since when were vampires afraid of humans? Why did they set rules that I wasn't allowed here?

Well, rules were meant to be broken.

I went on running, feeling the wind whipping through my hair as I ran faster than a normal human, but not at supernatural speeds. I closed my eyes, not needing to see to be able to dodge the trees around me. My vampire side took care of that. Until, suddenly, I _did_ crash into something.

I staggered backwards and gasped as I looked up. I had crashed right into a boy...and he was still standing. With my advanced strength and speed, I should have sent him crashing to the ground.

"Uh...I...sorry?" I said as the boy stared at me. He looked around my age, but he was really tall and muscular. He had dark skin, brown eyes, and black hair. He must be one of the Quileute tribe I realised. Should I be afraid of him? Supposedly, I should be...but I wasn't. What did I have to be afraid of?

"What are you doing here?" The boy asked

"Uh...running?" I said. He watched me.

"What's your name?" He asked

"Poppy Moore." The false name came off my tongue easily, which was a relief. "What's yours?"

The boy didn't say anything for a moment, before he said, "Quil Ateara."

"Hey, Quil." I said, still uncertain. He was staring at me as if I was about to punch him.

"What would you say if I told you I knew all about vampires?" Quil blurted out. I looked at him for a moment, and had to hold back a laugh. I stepped right near him and stood on tip-toes so I could whisper in his ear. He stood frozen as I did so.

"I would say how much do you know?" I whispered. He stepped backwards and stared at me.

"So...you _are_ a vampire?" He asked. Was there any point in hiding it? Alice had said that these people could tell.

"Partly." I said, then I mentally kicked myself. I wasn't supposed to be telling them I was half human, was I? Although...wouldn't they prefer that to full vampire? It sure would help me explain that I wasn't a threat.

"Partly?" Quil asked. I didn't say anything. "I wasn't sure if you really were a vampire. It feels like you are...but it also feels like you're not. You smell weird."

"Gee, thanks." I said

"No, I mean...I can smell vampire, but I can also smell human." He said. He stared at me. "You're partly vampire...are you partly human?"

He seemed to know so much already, that I might as well tell him. Besides, I was getting into trouble for crossing the border anyway, why not break _all_ the rules?

"Yeah." I said. I sat down on the floor, crossing my legs. "So you don't have to collect an army to come and kill the dangerous vampire. I'm safe."

Quil's eyes widened, "How...how is that even possible? Part human, part vampire?"

"My Mom was human." I told him, "She's vampire now, but she was human when she gave birth to me. My Dad's a vampire."

"Wait...you were _born_ a vampire?" Quil asked, "You weren't bitten or whatever?"

I shook my head, "That's what makes me so safe." I laughed, "Apparently that makes me pretty special."

He was giving me a weird look. Part of it was curiosity, and part of it was...fear.

"Look, I promise I'm not dangerous." I told him, "I'm not going to drink your blood, alright? I hardly drink blood at all - I eat normal food - and when I do it's animal blood."

It felt weird talking about this...it felt wrong. But he already knew about vampires, right? So where was the harm? And it wasn't like he was running away, or trying to kill me before I killed him. He was just watching me. He sat down on the floor opposite me.

"So...what's that like?" He asked, his curiosity taking over. I shrugged.

"It's alright." I said, "I'm stronger and faster than humans, but not as much as a vampire. I can sleep, but I don't need to. I drink blood, and I eat food. I've never had any problems with control, not like a normal vampire would. And until recently, I didn't even know that vampires _did_ drink human blood. Talk about a sheltered life, right? It had never occurred to me that there might be a different way."

Quil was looking more and more fascinated by the minute, and I think I had convinced him that I wasn't dangerous. I didn't know why Alice and Jasper and Mom had warned me to stay away. I couldn't see why I shouldn't be here. Nothing bad was happening.

"I've never met a vampire like you before." He said, "A half vampire, I mean. Not that I've really met many vampires in person."

"I've never met a non-vampire who knows about vampires." I admitted

"They're a part of our tribe's legends." Quil said, "We're all told about them from a young age, but most people think they're just stories. There's only some of us who know that they're true."

"You're supposed to kill me, right? To protect your tribe?" I said

"Yeah..." Quil said, looking across at me as if wondering how I knew that.

"So, are you going to?" I asked

"Going to what?" Quil asked

"Kill me." I said. Quil laughed.

"No." He said, "I don't think that will be necessary. Although, you might want to explain yourself to the others before you waltz onto La Push property again."

"I didn't waltz, I ran." I pointed out.

"Right." Quil said, "That makes all the difference."

I laughed.

"What brings you here anyway?" Quil asked

"I live in Forks." I said, "I needed to get away, so I came here."

"Get away from what?" Quil asked

"Life." I told him

"Well then, you came to the right place. Your life just stops completely when you cross onto La Push land." Quil told me.

"Shut up." I said, laughing, "You know what I mean."

"Yeah." He said, "I get it."

"So you live here in La Push?" I asked

"Yep." Quil said

"What's that like?" I asked, curious to learn about the place I'd been forbidden to go.

"It's pretty cool." Quil said, "All us guys are pretty close, we have fun."

"Do you have a lot of friends here?" I asked, leaning back on my hands and tilting my head back so I could look at the sky through the thick branches of the trees above us.

"Yeah." Quil said, "They're all guys, except Leah."

"Is she your girlfriend?" I asked, without really knowing why.

"No, no!" Quil laughed, "She just happens to hang out with us guys."

"Tell me about your friends." I said

"Well, there's Embry and Jacob." Quil said, "And then there's Sam and Paul and Jared. Leah and Seth, and Collin and Brady. They've all been my friends for ages. And there are lots of others!" Quil seemed to be about to launch into a list of names but he stopped himself, "What about you? You got many friends?"

"Not really any in Forks." I said, "I only just moved here. But back home I've got lots. My best friend's called Brooke."

"So, where's home?" Quil asked. _California_.

"Florida." I said

"So what brings you to Forks?" He asked

"Independence from my parents." I said, "I'm supposed to learn how to live or whatever."

"Learn how to live, hu?" Quil asked

"Uh-huh." I said, still staring up at the sky. I thought about how easily the lies were coming from my mouth. Back home, I'd never really had the chance to lie. Dad could read my every thought, and although I'd gotten slightly better at hiding my real thoughts, lying was a problem. And I'd never had much reason to lie to my friends; my only real secret was the vampire world.

We'd stayed silent for a while, but I hardly noticed as I was lost in thought. Then Quil's voice broke through the silence. "Maybe I can help you with that."

I sat up to look at him. He had been lying down next to me, though I had no idea when he'd moved from sitting opposite me. I looked down at him. "What do you mean?"

"I can show you around Forks and La Push." He said, "We can hang out together. If you're learning how to live, you're gunna need some friends, right?"

"Right. Yeah, I guess." I said

"Is that a yes?" Quil asked, "Will you let me be your personal life coach?"

"Yes." I said. Quil sat up to face me properly, and practically bumped noses with me. I hadn't realised how close we had been. I laughed, pulling back and putting some distance between us. "What's first on the agenda, oh mighty life coach?"

Before he could answer, my phone rang, annoying beeping music cutting through the air. I checked the caller ID; Alice. Quil gave me an odd look when I ignored the call, "Aren't you going to get that?"

"Naah, it's not important." I told him.

"Who was it?" He asked

"My aunt." I said, "I'm staying with her and my uncle whilst I gain independence." I rolled my eyes, "How can I be independent if she keeps calling me?"

"She's a bit of a pain, hu?" Quil asked

"When she wants to be." I said. I was aware that I was getting a little carried away with my back story, but right now Alice _was_ being a pain. Couldn't she just leave me alone so I could get on with my life?

"Alright." Quil said, jumping to his feet. "Let's begin our lesson of how to live your life."

I laughed, standing up next to him. I groaned when the beeping noises started again. This time it was Jasper. I was about to end the call when I remembered what happened last time I repeatedly ignored calls from my family. I'd turned up and had seconds to say goodbye before there was a major life changing disaster. What if Alice and Jasper weren't calling just to have a go at me and tell me to come back to Forks? What if something bad had happened? What if the Volturi were here? What if Arietta was in danger? What if-

"Hey Jasper."

"Renesmee?" He answered, "Where are you?"

"I'm somewhere." I answered

"Renesmee." Jasper growled, "Are you in La Push?" I didn't say anything. "Renesmee, get out of there. It's dangerous."

"No it isn't." I snapped, anger bubbling inside of me. There was a noise in the background which must have been Alice snatching the phone, because it was her voice I heard next.

"Renesmee," She said, "Please come home. Let's talk about this? I'm really sorry that we saw you dancing. It won't happen again, I swear. Just please come home."

"It's not like I've run away or anything, I'm coming back." I said, "Geez, don't be so overprotective!"

"We have to be overprotective Renesmee!" Alice said, "Your whole family's in danger and your parent's trusted me and Jasper with your safety!"

The mention of my parents made the anger melt away. I sighed. "Alright. I'll be there soon." I hung up and turned back to Quil, "I'm sorry, I've gotta go."

"Skipping class?" Quil asked, making a tut-tut sound. I laughed.

"I'm sorry, I'm a terrible student anyway." I said

"I don't think you are." Quil said, his cell appeared in his hand. "Can I have your number? We'll do this again another time?"

"Quil-" I began.

"Come on, how are you going to learn how to live without a tutor?" Quil interrupted. I knew I should say no. I knew that Alice and Jasper would freak if I went to La Push again, but I wanted to see Quil again. I hadn't even spent half an hour with him, but already I felt like he was my friend. My _good _friend. And I needed good friends here.

"Fine. You win." I said. I took the phone from his hand and saved my number into his contacts. I started to type _Renesmee_, but checked myself and changed it to _Poppy_. "Now I've really gotta go. I'll see you around, Quil."

"See ya Poppy!" Quil called as I jogged away from him. I made my way back to where I'd left the Vanquish, on the side of the road nearer the centre of Forks, and drove back to Alice and Jasper's house.

"Renesmee!" Alice called and she was standing next to the Vanquish as soon as I pulled up. I opened the door and stepped out of the car to face her. "Renesmee, do you have any idea how worried we were?"

She wrapped her arms around me. She wasn't mad? "Worried?"

"You could have been killed!" She said. She pulled away from me and wrinkled her nose. "You smell like them."

"Them?" I asked

"Those Quileute boys." Alice said, "They stink and you smell like them. Did they confront you?"

"Confront me? Jesus Alice, I'm not going to get killed." I said, "I met one of them and we talked. Big deal."

"It _is_ a big deal!" Alice said. I noticed Jasper lingering in the doorway. The look he gave me showed he agreed with Alice. "Look, I'm not trying to control your life or be your parent! I don't want to have to put rules over you, I know you're not a kid. You should be able to do whatever you want, but I really was worried about you today! I only called you back today because I care about you, Renesmee."

I sighed, "I'm sorry I worried you, okay?"

"Don't go back there Renesmee, please?" Alice begged

"Fine. I won't." I said

"Promise?" Alice asked, her eyes wide.

"Promise." I said. I didn't want to make Alice and Jasper upset. I didn't want to put myself in danger, even though I didn't see the danger. Alice and Jasper had taken me in and tried to keep me safe. It was the least I could do to follow the one rule I'd been given.

"Alright." Alice said, "Now come inside, I want to show you something!"

And so, the day went back to normal. Alice showed me a bunch of clothes she'd bought for herself and for me, and I cooked myself dinner - seeing as I'd forgotten to get the take out on the way home from La Push. I called Brooke and filled her in on all the fake-details of my new life in Florida, and then I went to bed.

The next few days passed in a blur; I spent the day at school, hanging out with Rachel at lunch, went home and either went hunting with Alice and Jasper or cooked myself something to eat, before talking to Brooke and going to bed.

On Saturday, Rachel invited me to come shopping with her and her two friends Abby and Hannah. I'd met them a few times, and they seemed pretty cool, so I agreed. They seemed to like me - and they liked me even more when I paid for everyone's pizza with my new debit card, courtesy of my father. I hoped he didn't mean for me to use in in emergencies only, or he might have a little surprise when he saw how much money I spent on the shopping trip...

"So, Poppy, what's Florida like?" Hannah asked, "Aren't people from Florida supposed to be like, really tanned?"

"My parents are really pale, I guess I get it from them." I said. It wasn't a lie. Even before Mom had been changed, she had unusually pale skin for someone who had grown up in Arizona. And I wasn't quite as pale as a normal vampire, seeing as I did have blood pumping through my veins. It was believable that I was just naturally light-skinned, wasn't it?

"So, how come your parent's are so cool with you moving to the other side of the country?" Abby asked, "I mean, I know you said they want you to gain independence and stuff, but my parents would_ flip_ if I was this far away from them! They'd want to know my every move!"

"They've always been pretty laid back about what I do." I said, which was partially true. They'd always known that I could take care of myself, thanks to my vampire abilities, and they'd always trusted me to go out with friends and be responsible. But at the same time, they could be _extremely_ overprotective at times. And, if it were different circumstances, I don't think Dad would have been all too happy about me moving this far away. Although, I couldn't exactly be sure how far away I was from them. Had they escaped the Volturi and run away? Could they be the other side of the country by now - or in a different country all together? Or would they come to Washington, to try and be near us? I doubted that - they wouldn't want to lead the Volturi to me and Arietta. It also posed the question; Did they escape? Which was a question I didn't really want to think about. What would happen if they didn't escape? Would the Volturi kill them? Or would they hold them hostage, and try to find me and Arietta?

"Poppy?" Rachel said, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Hu? Sorry, I wasn't listening." I said

"Your phone's ringing!" Rachel said

"Oh right." I said. I hadn't even noticed the annoying beeping sound. I fished it out of my pocket and looked at the caller ID. It was an unknown number. "Hello?"

"Hey, Poppy, it's me." I tried (and failed) to place the voice. It was a guy. I knew it from somewhere, but I couldn't think where. It had to be someone in Forks, who else called me Poppy? I thought of every guy in Forks high school, but I hadn't given any of them my number, and none of their voices seemed to fit.

"Uh...who?" I asked

"Quil!" The voice said, sounding hurt. Oh, right. Quil lived in La Push, not Forks. Makes sense - he didn't go to Forks high school. I remembered that I hadn't taken his number when I'd given him mine - explaining the unknown caller ID.

"Oh, Quil sorry!" I said, "What's up?"

"You've been skipping lessons." Quil said

"Lessons?" I asked

"Life lessons!" He said, "You haven't forgotten already? I said we'd have the lesson another day!"

"Right." I said, "But we hadn't arranged any, so how could I have skipped them."

Quil was silent for a moment. "Whatever. You wanna meet up?"

"Now?" I asked, looking around the table at Rachel, Abby, and Hannah, who were all eating pizza and pretending not to listen to my conversation.

"Yeah, if you want." Quil said

"I'm actually busy at the moment-" I began

"Oh, right. I get it." Quil said, "You don't have to if you don't want to."

"No, no, Quil!" I said, "I really am busy! But, you know what? I'm free later, wanna meet up then?"

"Yeah, okay!" Quil said, and I could practically hear the grin on his face in his words. "Same place as before?"

"Okay." I said, "Meet you there in an hour?"

"Sure! See ya, Poppy." Quil said

"Bye." I said, before hanging up and turning back to the three girls who were watching me.

"Who was that?" Abby asked

"My friend Quil." I said

"Is he your boyfriend?" Hannah asked

"No." I said, laughing, "We're just friends. He lives over on La Push."

"Oh, there are some _cute_ guys over there!" Abby said, "Are you sure he's not your boyfriend?"

"Pretty sure!" I said

"Pity." Abby said, "He could have set us up with some of his mates."

"Is he like, super hot?" Hannah asked. I considered. I supposed Quil was quite good looking, but I hadn't really thought about it all that much. Now that I started really thinking about it, he _was_ pretty hot.

"Yeah, I guess." I said

"Oh, paint me a word picture!" Abby said. I laughed.

"Um, okay?" I said, "He's tall, and he's pretty muscular. He's got tanned skin, black hair, and brown eyes."

"You just described half the guys in La Push!" Hannah moaned

"Sorry, that's all I know." I said, "Now are you guys all finished with your pizza, 'cause I've gotta go."

"Are you meeting Quil?" Rachel asked

"Yeah." I said

"Ooooh, Poppy's got a _date_!" Abby sang

"Poppy and Quil, sitting in a tree," Hannah began, and they both joined in for the "K-I-S-S-I-N-G."

"You sound about 6 years old." Rachel told them flatly

"It's not a date." I said, "And we're not going to kiss."

"_Sure_." Abby said, winking at Hannah.

"_Right_." Hannah said, winking back.

"Ignore them." Rachel told me, "They're a pair of morons who forget that they're _seventeen_." She aimed the last bit at Abby and Hannah who rolled their eyes. "Go have fun."

"Thanks." I said, standing up, "I'll see you guys on Monday."

"See ya." Rachel said

"Say hi to Quil for us!" Hannah called, and she and Abby started giggling. I rolled my eyes as I exited the pizza place and walked down the street to where I'd parked the Vanquish. I was halfway to La Push when I remembered my promise to Alice. I wasn't supposed to go to La Push, and I certainly wasn't meant to meet any of the people who lived there. But Quil had sounded so disappointed when I'd began to say I couldn't come. And honestly, I wanted to see him. I'd thought about him a lot over the last week. I pushed my decision to stay away from La Push to the back of my mind. If I wanted, I could regret this later. And I could grovel to Alice and Jasper. For now, I was going to enjoy myself.

I drove a little way into La Push before I hopped out of the car and walked to where I'd met Quil before. He was already waiting for me and smiled when he saw me. "I wasn't sure if you'd come."

"Of course I came!" I said, "I've gotta learn how to live, right?"

"Right!" Quil said

"So, what's lesson number one?" I asked, sitting down cross legged on the ground and waiting.

"Uh..." Quil thought for a moment, "Meeting new people. Come on, I'll introduce you to some of the others."

"Um, okay?" I said, standing up. I was meeting other people? Had I signed up for this? I followed Quil as we walked deeper into La Push. Soon, we came to the town itself. "Where are we going?"

"To Emily's house." Quil said, "She's Sam's wife - we all hang out at their place."

"All? How many people are going to be there?" I asked

"Oh, not everyone will be there today." Quil said, "But we'll see who we can find to introduce you to. Think of it as your first field trip in the school of life."

"Right, okay." I said. Quil led me to a house, and he walked right in without knocking or anything. I followed him inside, where I could smell fresh cookies baking. Oh, they smelt_ good_.

"Hey Emily." Quil said to a woman in the kitchen

"Don't you dare touch those cookies Quil." She said, although she hadn't turned around and seen him reaching towards the plate.

"I wasn't gunna!" Quil said

"You would have burnt your hand." She told him.

"I wasn't gunna!" Quil repeated

"I've heard that one before." She turned around, and I had to hold back a gasp. For one thing, she was _gorgeous_, but the main thing that stood out where the three scars down the side of her face. They looked faded, but the colour was bright all the same. I couldn't imagine what could have caused scars like that. I forced myself not to stare at them as she smiled at me, "Hi, we haven't met, have we? I'm Emily."

"Uh, I'm Poppy." I said

"I'm teaching Poppy how to live." Quil said. He took the momentary distraction to reach out and grab a cookie, only to drop it when he found it burning hot.

"Quil!" Emily scolded, "I _told_ you! And what do you mean teaching her how to live? Like _you_ know how to live."

"I do!" Quil said, blowing on the cookie - which he had dropped onto the kitchen table - to cool it down.

"Right." Emily said, as she produced a batch of cookies from the counter. She offered the plate to me. "Poppy, would you like a _cooled down_ cookie?"

I laughed and took one, "Thanks."

Quil narrowed his eyes, "You could have told me."

She held out the plate. "You can have _one_ Quil. _One_. I mean it."

"Of course!" Quil said innocently. Emily rolled her eyes and turned to me.

"You should see the way these boys eat!" She said, "I never have any food in the house!"

"It's not just me!" Quil defended, "Embry's worse!"

"You called?" A voice said, and a boy appeared in the doorway. He was taller than Quil, but not quite as muscular, and had the same dark hair and eyes as Quil.

"Hey, Embry, this is Poppy." Quil said, gesturing to me, "Poppy this is Embry."

"Hey." I said

"Who's this?" Embry asked, raising his eyebrows at Quil, "Bagged yourself a girlfriend have we?"

"No!" Quil said, taking a swipe at Embry's head, "Poppy's a friend. I'm teaching her how to live."

Embry snorted. "_You_?"

"Yes me!" Quil said. Embry turned to me.

"Look, if you want someone to show you how to live - I'm your guy." He said

"Neither of you numb-skulls know how to live." A new voice said, and I looked over to see someone else had entered the room. This guy was taller and more muscular than Embry or Quil, and had an older looking face. He had the dark skin, hair, and eyes that I was beginning to associate with everyone in La Push.

"Poppy, this is Sam." Quil said, shooting a glare at Sam.

"So, this is the half-breed you told us about?" Sam asked, looking me over.

"Sam, be nice." Emily told him as she took yet another batch of cookies out of the oven.

"I told you she isn't dangerous." Quil said, "She's cool."

"I know what you told me." Sam said. His eyes were watching Emily as she busied herself around the kitchen. He tore his gaze from his wife and looked back to me. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh, Quil invited me over?" I said, it coming out as more of a question than a statement. Sam had an air of authority about him, and he even scared me a little. Which was ridiculous. He might be twice my size, but I had supernatural abilities on my side.

"That's not what I meant." Sam told me.

"Well I'm not here to kill everyone, if that's what you're getting at." I said, anger bubbling inside of me. My being a vampire had never been a problem before - mostly because no one could tell the difference - but just because these people knew about vampires, they thought they _knew_ me. They'd judged me, branded me as dangerous and untrustworthy. What did they know?

"If you were here to kill, you would have killed by now." Sam said, as if he knew all about me and vampires. "And I don't imagine you would have filled up on cookies before you went...hunting." Sam looked repulsed by the notion, and I had to roll my eyes.

"Right." I said, "So as long as I eat cookies, you're convinced that I'm safe to hang out here?"

"We don't normally welcome your kind here." Sam told me

"Yeah I got the feeling you didn't." I said

"But," Sam continued as if I hadn't spoken, "I can see that you're not here to cause trouble. And Quil invited you so, you can stay. But if you start acting all...vampire-like, I'll personally throw you out."

I almost snorted, but I stopped myself and nodded instead. "I'm not going to act vampire-like, I promise."

There was a knock at the door, and Emily went to answer it. From what I'd seen so far, not many people actually knocked on the door of Emily's house. I couldn't hear the person at the door, but I could hear Emily.

"Sure! No I hadn't forgotten." She was saying, "Are you picking her up tomorrow?"

Before I could listen to any more, a toddler ran into the kitchen. She had long black hair and bright brown eyes, and a massive grin on her face.

"Quilly!" She screamed and jumped up at Quil. He caught her and held her in his arms.

"Hey Claire." He said, "Are you staying at Emily's tonight?"

Claire nodded her head vigorously, "Can we play hide and seek?"

"Sure, but first I want you to meet someone." Quil said, "Claire this is my friend Poppy. Poppy, this is Claire. She's Emily's niece."

Claire looked at me and _growled_. She actually growled. "_My_ Quilly! You can't be Quil's girlfriend!"

"I'm not, don't worry." I said with a laugh, and I couldn't resist adding, "Are _you_ Quil's girlfriend?"

"I'm too young!" She said, "But he's still mine."

"Oh, is that right?" I said

"Yep." Claire said

"I'll stay away from him then." I said, "I wouldn't want to make someone at deadly as you angry."

Claire growled again, before turning back to Quil. "Hide and seek. Now."

"Alright, you go hide, and I'll count to 200 and come find you." Quil said, "1...2...3..." Claire squealed and jumped out of his arms, running from the room in an attempt to find somewhere to hide. Quil turned back to me. "Sorry about that."

"Don't be." I said, "You're really close to her."

"Yeah, they have a _special bond_." Embry said, looking like he was holding back laugher. Sam elbowed him in the ribs and he grunted in pain.

"Come on, we'd better go pretend to look for her." Quil said

"Pretend?" I asked

"She always hides in Emily's closet." Quil explained, "But you have to pretend you don't know where to find her first."

"Ahh, okay." I said, following Quil out of the back door into the yard. "So how come you're so close to Emily's niece?"

Quil shrugged, "She goes round Emily's a lot. I go round Emily's a lot. She took a liking to me."

"You're so cute with her." I commented, "_Quilly_."

"Don't." Quil said. I laughed as we walked across the garden. "She's a good kid. Her Mom has to work all the time, so Emily looks after her a lot."

"I don't think she liked the idea of you having a girlfriend." I said

"She's...possessive, I guess." Quil said, "It's not like I haven't _had_ girlfriends."

"I think it's sweet." I said

"Yeah, she is really sweet." Quil agreed

"No, I meant you. You and her." I said. Quil turned to look at me. We'd walked out of Emily's yard now and without even realising it we were back in the forest.

"You think I'm sweet?" Quil asked

"Yeah," I said with a laugh, "I guess."

A spark flashed between us as my eyes met his. I honestly don't know how it happened, but suddenly I was kissing Quil. I wasn't sure if I kissed him, or if he kissed me, but we were definitely _kissing_. I thought back to the words I had spoken earlier that day to Abby and Hannah 'We're not going to kiss'. Whoops...

I pulled away. "Uh...I should go. You need to go find Claire."

"Poppy-" Quil began

"Call me." I said, before breaking into a run. What the hell had just happened...?

* * *

**Okay, so I know that there are a lot of things in this chapter that don't really make sense. For one thing, I know that by this point Claire should be all grown up, but for the purpose of this story she's not :/ Quil imprinted on her, but acts as a big brother/uncle/father figure and doesn't have any romantic feelings for her.**

**I don't want to spoil the story, but I feel like I need to reassure everyone; Quil and Renesmee are not going to end up together. Sorry for the spoiler.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! Please keep reviewing, tell me what you think :) Anyone who reviews will get a sneak peak of the next chapter before I update...**

**UPDATE: I wasn't happy with the fact that Renesmee just kind of burst into song...I thought it was too cheesy and high-school-musical-ish, so I took it out and replaced it with the dancing...**


	6. Belonging

**Hearts of Ice**

**Chapter 6: ?**

"Renesmee Cullen, you _promised_!" Alice screeched, storming out of the house as soon as I pulled up in the driveway.

"Shh, Alice!" I said, looking around and hoping no one had heard her use my real name.

"No I will not shh!" Alice growled, "Get inside. Now." She tugged me inside the house, where Jasper was stood against the wall with his arms crossed against his chest, watching me. "Tell me, Renesmee, do promises mean _nothing_ to you?"

"Alice, I'm sorry!" I said

"Sorry?" Alice asked, "Why the hell did you go back there?"

"Why the hell shouldn't I?" I yelled before I could stop myself.

"Renesmee, it's dangerous!" Alice said

"No, it's not!" I said, "You said they would all kill me, but I'm still alive aren't I?"

"You must have gotten lucky. Maybe they were too busy to realise you were there-" Alice began

"They said I could hang out there." I told her, "They said they weren't going to kill me."

"You _spoke_ to them? Who did you speak to?" Jasper demanded

"Quil, Embry, Emily, Claire, and Sam." I said, not expecting any of the names to be recognised by Alice or Jasper.

"Sam?" Jasper looked doubtful

"Yes, so?" I asked. Jasper looked at Alice now.

"Sam wouldn't allow it." He said to her

"I know..." Alice said, "He'd make sure any vampire was killed as soon as they set foot in La Push."

"Well he didn't!" I said, but they both ignored me.

"They'd never accept a vampire - half human or not!" Jasper said

"Are you listening to me?" I asked. Jasper turned back to me.

"What did Sam say to you?" He asked. I thought back to our conversation.

"He said that he didn't normally welcome vampires there but he could see that I wasn't going to cause trouble and that I could stay, but if I started acting like a vampire he'd kick me out." I said, "Oh, and he said that if I ate cookies I was safe." Jasper and Alice stared at me. "Because if I was eating cookies I obviously wasn't going there to hunt..." I started to explain. Jasper and Alice exchanged a look, as if having a silent conversation.

"Are you _sure_?" Alice asked me

"Of course I'm sure!" I said, "They didn't try to kill me, and they're not _going_ to try and kill me."

They still looked doubtful. "And they know that you're half vampire half human?" Jasper asked

"Yes!" I said, "They know Mom was a human when I was born."

"Do they know Bella was your Mom?" Alice asked, panic creeping into her voice.

"No." I said, "I gave them the Poppy Moore story."

"I don't want you going back there Renesmee." Alice told me

"Alice, they're safe!" I protested

"Please, Renesmee, just do what I ask!" Alice snapped. I felt like glaring at her. I felt like stomping my foot and screaming like a two year old. But I didn't. I composed myself.

"Okay. I'm sorry." I said, "I'll stay out of La Push, alright?"

"Thank you." Alice said, but she looked like she didn't believe me. Why should she - I'd already broken one promise to stay out of La Push. And I had every intention of breaking this one too.

It's not like I wanted to get into trouble - I wasn't the kind of girl who deliberately rebelled against people. I always did what my parents told me - because I knew that they knew better than me. Alice and Jasper probably did too, although as far as I could see they were totally _wrong_ about La Push. But, I had to go back there. At least once because, like it or not, I had to face Quil at some point.

I had kissed Quil! Or had he kissed me...? Did it matter? I wasn't sure. But me...and Quil...we'd only just met, for crying out loud! I was_ not_ that kind of girl. I never intended to come here and start making out with every guy who was friendly to me, and yet it seemed that I was doing just that.

I made my excuses and went up to my bedroom. I collapsed on the bed as the days events washed over me. La Push. Quil. _That kiss_. What was I going to do about that kiss? I dug my phone out of my pocket, knowing _one_ person who could help me out here. I glanced at the floorboards, knowing Alice and Jasper would be able to hear every word of my phone call. It probably wouldn't be the best idea to reveal my kiss to them.

I bounced down the stairs.

"I'm going to meet Rachel." I called

"Who?" Alice asked suspiciously, appearing in the doorway. I realised I hadn't told her about my new friend.

"Rachel, she's a friend from school." I said, "We're gunna hang out with some girls from school. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Okay..." Alice said, giving me one last suspicious look before disappearing. I headed out the front door and got into the Vanquish, driving a safe distance away before pulling into the side of the road and dialling my best friend's number.

"Hey Renesmee, what's up?" Brooke asked, picking up the phone. There was a lot of background noise around her, making it hard to pick out her voice.

"Uh...I kissed someone." I blurted out, "Or, he kissed me. I'm not sure which..."

"Renesmee!" Brooke squealed, "Details. Now."

"His name's Quil." I told her, "He's part of this tribe on the Indian Reservation here, La Push."

"A native?" Brooke asked curiously, "That's hot."

"I don't know what to do Brooke - I just met the guy!" I said, "I don't even know how it happened!"

"Not to mention Josh!" Brooke pointed out, "I mean, are you going to tell him?" Before I could answer, Brooke started chattering, "You know, I haven't seen him since before you left! Do you think he's gone into depression at your leaving? Maybe he can't deal with the long distance thing...have you been calling him everyday? I think you should, babe, if you want to save this relationship. I mean-"

"Brooke, I'm gunna have to call you back." I said absently

"What's wrong?" Brooke asked

"Nothing, Brookey." I said, "I just have to go. Talk to you later."

"Bye?" Brooke said, it coming out as more of a question than a statement.

"Bye." I said and I hung up the phone. I was almost hyperventilating. Oh God, I missed Josh like crazy. Almost as much as I missed Brooke or Arietta. He was a lying, cheating scum bag, but God I loved him. And here I was, kissing guys I'd only met twice. I rested my head against the steering wheel.

I should call him.

I reached for my cell. I paused. Should I call him? I hadn't spoken to him since he walked away from the cliff that day. Since I _made _him walk away. I told him I wanted him out of my life, that he was nothing to me. But that wasn't exactly true, was it? I traced the keys on my phone. Call Josh, don't call Josh. Talk things over, ignore what happened. Try and be friends, part ways forever. Cry, cry.

I was already crying. How much more hurt could be piled on top of me? I started keying in Josh's number, but I couldn't do it. Not today. Not when it had been such a short amount of time since _that day_. The day my life changed forever. I lost Josh, I left my parents, I skipped town, I split up from Arietta. And it was all still so fresh and raw. I couldn't face Josh. Not yet.

I turned my attention back to the other boy I was avoiding. Quil. I hadn't really been able to ask Brooke for any advice. How could she give me proper advice when she still thought I was dating Josh? I hadn't even told her. The only secret I'd ever kept from Brooke was my vampire nature. That was it. Everything else she knew. But it wasn't like I was really keeping this a _secret_, right? I just hadn't had the chance to tell her. It hadn't come up.

Who was I kidding? The subject of Josh had come up ten times more often than it usually did. I was avoiding telling Brooke, and I didn't even know why. I'd tell her the next time it came up, I decided. The decision seemed pointless and trivial compared to everything else going on.

My cell started vibrating in my hand; I'd forgotten it was there. I looked down at the Caller ID. It was Quil. I let it ring to voicemail. I'd told him to call me before bolting earlier today, but I couldn't face him either. Besides, who calls a mere hour after you tell them to call you? _Call me_ means in a few days, even a week maybe.

_Excuses, excuses, Renesmee..._

Whatever.

I got out of the car and walked into town, needing fresh air. I bought myself a coffee and scowled at the cold damp weather of Forks. Why anyone would choose to live here was beyond me. My eyes floated to an ATM on the street and a thought struck me. I'd spent a small fortune on my shopping trip earlier today, but I was willing to bet I hadn't even put a small dent in the bank balance of my new debit cards. I made my way over to the ATM and inserted my first card - the one in Renesmee Cullen's name.

I stared at the large number that appeared before my eyes when I pressed the 'Check Balance' button.

"Holy shit." I breathed.

I stared at the eleven-digit figure in the screen. I didn't doubt the other cards had similar amounts on them. And I was just walking around, with millions upon millions of dollars.

"Shit." I said again.

I just about managed to retrieve my card in my dazed state and shove it back into my purse. I knew we were filthy rich, but...

"Poppy?" A voice called, "Call me crazy, but didn't you leave a couple of hours back?"

I turned around to see Rachel, Hannah, and Abby standing on the opposite side of the road. Abby grinned, "How was your date with Quil?"

Oh great, because I really needed this right now.

"It wasn't a date." I told her, "And it was fine."

"Whatever." Abby said dismissively, as if she didn't believe me for a second when I denied it being a date, "We're gunna try and catch that new movie, _Red Sky_, wanna join us?"

I checked the time on my phone, wondering when I should be going home. It had been quite a while since I left, and I'd been out all day before that. Then again, I _had_ told Alice I was meeting Rachel... "Sure, sounds good."

I crossed the road to where they were standing and Rachel and Abby linked arms with me, with Hannah on Abby's other side. It was nice, being a part of their little girly gang. Normal. We paid for the tickets - the teenager at the booth glared at me when I offered her my debit card, and I made a mental note to take out some cash soon - and found our seats inside the movie theatre. As it turned out _Red Sky _was a horror movie about vampires...I knew the irony of my situation. I watched as vampires grabbed random victims from the streets and drank their blood dry, almost laughing at the stereotypes. How wrong they were about vampires. I'd always found it funny to read vampire books, and to watch vampire movies. Although, with the recent knowledge that vampires actually_ did_ kill humans, the movie seemed a lot less funny and a lot more real life.

Abby and Hannah were both terrified, covering each others eyes only to shriek when they heard the sounds of humans screaming and limbs being torn apart. Apparently Rachel - who was finding the whole thing hilarious - hadn't told them that it was a horror movie. They'd thought it was a supernatural love story. Right, because that _happened_ with vampires. I was beginning to see where the movie got it's name as bright red blood covered the screen in front of me.

When we finally exited the cinema, Hannah and Abby were shaking and Rachel looked pretty scared herself. If I hadn't been immortal, I probably would have been scared too. Abby shook her head, "Vampires are seriously creepy."

"Agreed." Hannah said, "Pure. Evil."

"Question - what would you do if you met a vampire?" Rachel asked

"Run away screaming as fast as I could." Abby said decidedly, "At least the bastard would have to work for his meal."

"I'd find a way to kill it." Hannah argued, "Garlic or silver or something. Those bitches wouldn't last a second with me around."

They were looking at me expectantly, and I mumbled something about not really knowing. As the three girls carried on talking about how horrific vampires were, and came up with every way they could kill a vampire, should they come across one, I realised more and more that I _really_ shouldn't be here. The monsters they were describing...that was _me_. My family. And here I was, acting like I was a human and trying to fit in. I was a vampire. I should be with other vampires.

"I've gotta go." I said suddenly, "I'll see you at school."

"Hey, wait, I'll give you a ride home!" Rachel said

"No thanks, I brought my car." I said, and I took off before they could say anything else. I shut myself inside my car and wiped away the tears that had started to fall down my cheeks. "Stop it. Stop crying."

My body wouldn't obey my command, and more tears rolled across my skin. I slumped against the steering wheel. No big deal. So, they were human, I was a vampire. It had never stopped me before. I had always known I was _different_ and that I would never really _fit in_, but that didn't mean I couldn't blend in amongst humans. I could do all the fitting in I wanted at home, and just concentrate on not blowing by cover when it came to interacting with humans.

The tears finally dried up and I started the engine, pulling away from the side of the road and heading home. Alice and Jasper were just where I'd left them, curled up on the couch watching an old film from the sixties. I lingered in the doorway, trying and failing to recognise the movie. They must have known I was there, but neither of them reacted. Maybe they were just too absorbed in each other to really care what I did. I gave up on trying to figure out the movie and headed upstairs to my room instead.

It was still only the afternoon and I had exactly...nothing to do. I lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling. I didn't know how much time passed before Alice came into my room, opening the door and knocking afterwards - which rather defeated the point of knocking at all. "Renesmee?"

"Yep?" I asked

"I'm sorry I yelled earlier." She said, as I sat up to face her. "I shouldn't have gotten so mad at you. It's just...I worry, that's all."

"You don't need to worry, Alice!" I assured her. After all, I was an immortal vampire. Well, half at least. Nothing could hurt me. I wasn't scared of a bunch of humans in La Push, and Alice shouldn't be either. I didn't say any of this, not wanting an argument when Alice had offered me an apology.

"I do worry." She said, "Maybe it would be different if you were full vampire, but you're not."

"Why would it be any different?" I demanded, annoyed.

"Well, I mean you're half human." Alice said, "It wouldn't be safe for a human to wonder around by herself on land where people wanted to kill her."

"I'm also half vampire!" I said, not adding that the people in La Push _didn't_ want to kill me.

"Half." Alice said, "You're a bit of both, and that means that you need all the protecting you can get from us."

Did she even realise how _patronizing _she was being?

"I can take care of myself." I said, "You wouldn't be this protective of Rosalie, or Esme!"

"They wouldn't go to La Push." Alice said

"That's not the point!" I argued, "You wouldn't try and control where they went!"

"Because they're vampires! They can take care of themselves!" Alice said, "You're not like them Renesmee."

_Not like us_, I almost felt her add.

So, I didn't fit in with humans, and I didn't fit in with vampires. In my own family I was the odd one out - the outcast. The half-breed. The nuisance that needed looking after. Screw them. What did I need them for?

"Alice, darlin', come downstairs." Jasper called. No doubt he'd heard the conversation and felt my emotional reaction to Alice's words. Good old Jasper coming to save the day. Because I needed to be protected from this situation too.

Alice gave me one last look before disappearing.

~o.O.o~

"You never called me back earlier!" Brooke moaned as soon as I picked up the phone, "What happened? Why d'you ditch me?"

"Sorry, Brookey." I said, "Something came up. I'm totally free now, talk all you want."

"Okay, so you know I told you Santana had a new boyfriend?" Brooke asked, and she began rambling about my old friends. My old life. Was that ever going to be my life again? I started paying attention to Brooke again when I realised she was asking me a question. "Babe, when are you coming home? I miss you."

"I miss you too, Brookey." I said, "But I don't think I'm coming back for a while."

"Can't you come back and leave your parent's up there?" Brooke asked, "You can stay at my house - you know my mom would be cool with it! I'm sure your parents wouldn't mind!"

"You haven't met my parents." I said. Brooke had found it strange at first that I didn't introduce her to my parents, and that she had never been round my house. I didn't like lying to her, but how was I supposed to explain having parents who were physically only a year older than me? And a fridge full of spare blood for Arietta if she couldn't go out to hunt? It was easier to just lie and say I wasn't allowed friends round.

"Just a visit then?" Brooke asked, "Come back here for a day or two?"

"I can't travel from Florida to California just for a few days visit!" I protested

"You're rich, of course you can!" Brooke protested

"I don't think I'd be allowed." I said, hating the words I was saying, "My parents say we have to be united as a family in this time of crisis or whatever. And Ari would want to come with me, but my parent's wouldn't let her and she'd get upset and-"

"Alright! I get it!" Brooke said. I was a little surprised at how easy the lie had rolled off my tongue. At how easy my best friend had believed it. "You're just so far away!"

_Closer than you think_... I thought. "I know. I hate this."

It was true; I did hate it. I hated everything about this situation. The fact that I'd had to leave behind all my friends, separate from my family, leave my home and all my possessions - my whole life - to come to this rainy place and live with strangers. I hated the fact that I didn't fit in with anyone here. That I didn't feel like I belonged anywhere.

Although...could it be possible that I'd gotten a little closer to that feeling today...in La Push?

It was the strangest thing - I knew they were different from me, I knew I wasn't _one of them_. In all areas of logic, I _shouldn't_ fit in with them. But I just felt like I belonged there. Like it was home. And yet, it was the one place I was forbidden from going to. And why? The question kept racing through my brain. Why? Why? Why? Why? What's so bad about La Push? What's dangerous to an immortal? What am I supposed to be afraid of? Why can't I go to La Push? Why?

"Renesmee?" Brooke asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Yep?" I said

"I've gotta go." Brooke said, "I'll call you tomorrow!"

"Okay." I said, "See ya Brooke."

"Bye Renesmee." Brooke said, and she ended the call. I flopped back onto the bed and felt tears dripping down my cheeks. I wished Brooke was here. I wished she knew everything, so that she could understand what I was going through. I just wished, more than anything, that I had a friend - _someone_ - here with me, so that I didn't feel so completely and totally alone.

My phone chimed.

**If I didn't know you better I'd think you were ignoring me...most girls pick up the phone after asking a guy to call them. Just a tip in your life lessons.**

I couldn't help a small smile spreading across my face. Quil. He'd called another two times since I'd dodged the first phone call. I really should talk to him. If nothing else, it would be interaction with another living person. My phone chimed again.

**Did I freak you out? I'm sorry. What happened back there?**

I didn't even know. I couldn't remember how we'd ended up kissing, but the simple fact was that we had. Did it matter who had initiated it, or how it had come about? When it really came down to it, did it matter at all?

**Talk to me Poppy? Tell me to get lost if you want. I'll cry a lot, but at least it will get you talking.**

A small laugh escaped my lips as I imagined Quil lying weeping on the floor. I hit reply and tapped out a message before hitting send.

**Most guys don't call mere hours after a girl asks him to call her. Just a tip in _your_ life lessons.**

**Who said I was anything like most guys? I get the feeling you're not like most girls either, Poppy Moore. ** Came his reply.

I laughed and couldn't resist dialling Quil's number. He picked up on the first ring, "Poppy?"

"I am most definitely not like most girls." I told him

"I thought as much." Quil said. There was a pause. "About earlier..."

"I don't know what happened." I cut in.

"Me neither." Quil agreed. Another pause. "What does it mean for us?"

"I..." I paused, listening out for signs of Alice or Jasper downstairs. They'd gone out hunting, but I didn't want them coming back to hear this conversation. "I'm not sure. I guess we have three options."

"And they are?" Quil asked

"Option one; avoid each other completely." I said

"Veto." Quil said instantly, making me smile.

"Option two; go back to being friends." I said. Quil remained silent for a few seconds.

"What's option three?" He asked finally

"Option three; we start dating." I said, pushing the words out of my mouth before I could change my mind. They had to be said. If he didn't want it, that was fine. We'd be fine. We'd be friends - that was all I needed. But...if he were to want something more, I wasn't going to object...

"Option three sounds...pretty good to me." Quil said

"Is that you asking me out?" I asked

"No, of course not." Quil said, "_This_ is me asking you out; Poppy Moore, oh beautiful and wise one, will you do me the absolute honour of becoming my girlfriend?"

"Beautiful and wise one?" I questioned

"Poppy!" Quil moaned

"Okay, okay." I said, "Yes."

"So...we're dating now?" Quil asked. Could this have been more awkward?

"Yes, Quil." I said, "We're dating now."

I heard voices down the end of the line, but I couldn't make out any words. "Uh, Poppy? I've gotta go now. I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Okay." I said, smiling as Quil ended the call. Of course, I was forbidden to go and see Quil - although Alice hadn't exactly been that specific - but that was just a technicality. We'd get around that. The warm feeling of belonging was creeping back inside my stomach. Could it be that Quil was giving me that feeling? I'd only just met the guy; I'd spent all of two hours with him; I knew nothing about him...and yet, just a phone call had made my stomach flutter and crazy colours shoot around my brain like fireworks. Could it really be that Quil had caused all of that?

I wanted to go and see him. I wanted to go back to La Push, but I could hear Alice and Jasper opening the front door downstairs. I couldn't let them know anything about this. I couldn't even hint at the fact that I was now _dating_ one of the people they thought was so dangerous for me - or the fact that I planned full well to go and see him in the foreseeable future. I was glad Alice couldn't see my future, or that would have been a problem. As long as they didn't know what I was up to, I'd be fine. They had no way of knowing what I was thinking.

For the first time since I got here...I was glad my Dad wasn't here.

* * *

**Heyy, sorry it's been a while since I updated :/ I've had loads on and I've been out of the country for a few days so I couldn't update :/ Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter :) :) :) :) Keep reviewing, let me know what you thought :)**

**Some Fanfic recommendations are...**

**Morning Sun - Megg15**

_**'A carry on from the Twilight Saga; Breaking Dawn. But in Renesmee's point of view. It's all about how she faces her world's problems. I.e. Her love and passion for Jacob, her over protective family, the wolf pack and a danger more dangerous than the vampire's themselves. Read and review. Rated M for mature sex scene's between Jacob and Renesemee.'**_

**Becoming Renesmee**** - meridajane**

_**'Hidden from her dark past and hated by Edward, Renesmee discovers the bitter truth of what happen the night Bella died, and has no choice but to run away from her family. Years later, she must face them again, but this time, as the loving and kind hearted Carlie Masen. Can she keep her secret while proving worthy of her father's love? Or will she expose it trying to save her family?'**_

**My Guardian**** - Megg15**

_**'A Paul story. What happens if he imprints on someone with a terrifying and heartbreaking background. What happens if actually she is meant to be a Guardian? One of five people to save everything. What happens when love takes over? Paul finds the girl of his dreams, but she isn't as perfect as everyone thinks. Rated M for a reason.'**_

**All really great reads, check them out :) :)**

**Next update fairrrly soon :) xx**


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